Moonlight Sonata
by Oathie
Summary: Three years have past since that fateful night. Finally thinking she had moved on, her past returns to haunt her. Kerry is slowly beginning to realize how small and safe her world was before he came. With even more supernatural monsters and myths coming to light, will she be able to accept this dark reality? K/M/OC (May change to M due to content in later chapters.)
1. Night Out

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Chapter One

_Night Out_

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_Privacy. _

_The lack of it made it seem impossible for the famous kidnap victim, Kerry Nowicki, to seek any closure and progress in life. She soon found herself shrinking away from society, wanting to get away from all the questions, the reminders of what seemed so surreal to her now. She was constantly surrounded by the swarm of heartless media, who were relentless in trying to expose her story. But all their efforts were in vain. No one would know the truth behind what really happened between Michel and Kerry. They would only know the story of Ethan Bryne, the normal college student who met a tragic end. Kerry was used to reciting her false accountings countless times, and for a while, they seemed to help her forget or at least preoccupied her thoughts. At times, she even believed her own lies. _

_Long after the incident, Kerry's stories stayed consistent while her memories went into turmoil. She spent long nights second guessing what really happened, if it even happened. Michel's face started to fade away and she tried so desperately to hold onto his image. _

_Eventually the Kerry/Ethan story died down, people started to forget, and soon it became old news. After two years, it was as if the whole ordeal never happened. Even so, Kerry spent that period of her life staring at the blank walls of her room. The solitude became maddening. With nothing to preoccupy her, Kerry found herself yearning for the attention she once despised. Most importantly she wanted……no, needed anything that would fill the hollow cavity she felt devouring her. _

_This downward progression continued for months until she finally had enough. After two years it was time to put her past behind her, locked it away into her unconsciousness and make room for a brighter future._

_She chose this path after all…it was her own doing with no one else to blame….she chose life over eternal darkness. _

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"Dad, I gotta go alright? I love you too…mmhmm…bye." With a sigh she dropped her cellphone into a small clutch. She didn't even acknowledge the mocking laughter of her friends next to her. At this point, she was used to their immaturity.

Kerry hugged herself in an attempt to fight the cold wind. Her small hands rubbed against her bare arms in an attempt to create friction. This ended in failure. She actually made herself colder in the process.

It was 11:00PM, Kerry, and her friends Tori, Alex, and Mei stood outside near the front of the newest and supposedly hottest club in the area. She could hear the muffled sounds and thuds of the loud bass from the music inside. Her adrenaline raced with excited, she had never been here before and from the reliable feedback, she knew she wouldn't be disappointed.

"Wherrreee yoooou going this time Keeeewwweeeey?!" Her friend, Tori, was making weird baby faces as she reached over Kerry's shoulder to try and pinch her cheeks.

"Don't talk to me like I'm 2 years old. I told him I was sleeping over Mei's house," She deftly dodged the pinch and smacked the offending limb out of the way. Tori rubbed her hand, with a smug grin.

"You better hope he doesn't call my parents." Mei warned. "If I get in trouble because of you, you're all dying tonight."

"Yeah…" Kerry said plainly. They all burst out laughing.

"I think my dad knows I'm lying but he trusts me enough to not bother confronting me about it. It's like, as long as I'm not in jail or pregnant, he's fine." Kerry's smile faded. It wasn't always this way with her dad. He used to be insanely strict with her before the accident two years ago. Kerry figured the reason he was so lenient was because he didn't want his daughter to fall back into the slump of depression. She could tell he was wary every time she left the house by the way he asked her questions. It was never a, "Where're you going Kerry? Chloe's house? Okay! Be careful!" it was more like a, "Are you SURE you're only going to Chloe's house? Nowhere else? If anything happens you call me at once okay? Promise me you will."

Kerry's dad also did not completely trust her friends Tori and Alex, although he was fine with Mei. Quite honestly, she didn't blame him. They were 99.9% of the reasons she found herself in questionable situations. However, she was thankful to them because they helped her get back on her feet during a dark time in her life, as well as introduce her to her love of clubbing.

That night Kerry was wearing a fitting, black dress with sleeves that fell off her shoulders. She liked it because it emphasized and exposed her natural curves, shoulders, and collarbone area. The dress had a small golden belt that wrapped elegantly around the upper waist, and the bottom was high enough to be deviously attractive by showing off her legs. Her feet were clad in black gladiator sandals with straps that wrapped up to below the knees. She kept her make-up simple and her hair was pulled messily up with several gold pins and clips. Altogether she looked bold while maintaining class. Her friends were wearing equally daring outfits appropriate for the event.

"Pfft! I don't think so. Your dad doesn't notice anything else in the world now that he has Joanne, especially the small details." This time her other friend Alex was talking.

"As if your daughter running off with a bunch of turd-brained friends at night…is a small detail." Kerry snorted.

"Suck it up Kerry!" Alex stuck her tongue out obnoxiously, only to give her a quick wink shortly afterward.

Kerry thought about her soon-to- be-step-mom and how her dad never stopped smiling ever since they started dating, "You know, I didn't really like her at first but now I'm glad she's around. She makes Ian and dad so happy, and with all the stuff she does around the house…I swear….she's like Wonder Woman."

"Ooooh….I think you're jealous." Tori giggled.

"Oh yeah….you know it," Kerry's voice dripped sarcasm, "Damn that woman taking all my slave privileges. I'm so jealous SHE gets to wash the dishes, make breakfast/lunch/dinner, and do Ian's every bidding." But in the back of her mind, Kerry secretly did miss being needed around the house.

She quickly shook the thought out of her.

Lots had changed over the years, Kerry had graduated high school and had been accepted into Boston University but decided to take a year break to raise a bit more money, fill out scholarship applications, and to catch up with friends for the wasted years she spent staring blankly at her ceiling.

It was a Saturday night and Tori called earlier that day to see if Kerry was up for clubbing in the city. Kerry eagerly accepted and called her father at work to tell him she'd be sleeping over Mei's house tonight. She overlooked the fact that she promised a week ago to see a new movie with the family. Luckily, her dad had forgotten as well. Of course Ian would remember but he would eventually forgive her.

Kerry could see the entrance as the line moved up. It would only be a few short minutes more until they would be at the doors. It looked as though her toes had the chance of being kept from freezing off.

At this point Tori and Alex were talking about stupid things of little importance while Kerry had occupied herself with bouncing lightly on her feet to try to keep warm. She really hated carrying around a coat to clubs or other places like this because she knew she'd never wear it once she was inside. But if she had known the wait was this damn long, maybe she would have sacrificed the burden just this once. It was freezing! She laughed when she spotted Mei holding an imaginary cigarette in her hand and blowing hot air from her mouth.

"You're so weird!" Kerry laughed.

Tori and Alex stopped talking for a second to stare at Kerry, both were obviously confused. Mei grinned widely over their shoulders from behind and then proceeded to make ridiculous faces at the back of Alex's head.

"What the hell are you laughing about?" Alex stared at her with a raised brow.

"Don't worry about it!" Kerry barely managed those words between her laughter. It resulted in more raised eyebrows, this time, including the random strangers in line around them.

By this time, the girls found themselves at the front of the line. Fumbling through their bags, each took out their IDs and proceeded to the entrance after being approved from the bouncer. Tori shot a flirtatious wink that actually caused a timid reaction from the titan of a bouncer.

"You're so fuckin creepy…"

"Shut up Kerry."

_Heaven_…okay maybe not. But if Heaven was a crazy techno/rave nightclub with neon laser lights, off-the-wall technology, and complex architectural design and interior. This could definitely qualify.

They followed a dark cave-like entrance that echoed the club music making it sound hollow. The hallway concentrated the sound waves so they could feel the physical beating of the bass throughout their bodies. She loved it. Other than a few blacklights and small neon lights, Kerry had to keep a hand on the side of the rough-textured walls as she made her way shortly to the main room. The ceiling was high and covered in professional light systems that shot out lasers and lights which matched the rhythm of the songs playing. There were high quality speakers installed everywhere along the wall. When the girls looked around, they could see that there were two…no….actually three floors!

Near each corner of the abstractly-shaped room there were narrow staircases that were outlined with tiny-bulb lights. The second floor wrapped along the sides of the entire building and overlooked the dance floor in the center. The dance floor itself was huge and had randomly placed platforms with bars and poles, that several girls were having more than fun dancing on. The third floor had an open box that the DJ was in and directly opposite of him, there was a small area. Kerry could barely see that there were people lounging in it. No visible stairs led to the third floor so she assumed there were most likely some exclusive stairways and rooms elsewhere in the club. 'VIP,' she snorted.

She still wasn't used to any club like this one before. Most of the other clubs she went to played mainstream hip-hop/pop or reggaeton. This was her first time in a rave club but she loved the music, it was something different and new. She jokingly wondered how many of the total population of the club were actually free of any drug abuse. It couldn't be many because the majority of the people she saw looked like their minds were far away from their bodies.

Kerry was eager to dance, but being too caught up in the actually physical features of the club, she wanted to explore more to satisfy her awed curiosity.

"Hey guys!" She had to shout with her hands cupped around her mouth. "Do you wanna check out upstairs? Cause' I'm about to go up there myself!"

Mei who was the closest to Kerry, nodded her head and headed towards the nearest stairs. Alex and Tori on the other hand didn't catch her words over the blaring music.

"What did you say?!" Alex shouted back.

"I said!" Shouting took so much breath, "Do you want to come upstairs?!" She pointed up in emphasis.

"Sur-" Alex whirled around to be dragged off by Tori who was following two fairly attractive guys to the dance floor."

"I guess not?! We'll meet you two up there later I guess!" She shouted with an idiotic grin before getting lost in the massive crowd. Kerry shrugged and turned to follow Mei, who was probably already upstairs by now.

And there she was, as expected, sitting in a small booth area against the wall with comfortable seats and a table. Kerry slide into the booth across from her and grabbed a menu that was sitting there. It was a drink menu.

"Want anything? I'll buy." Kerry offered lightly, "I know you don't really like dancing and I really appreciate you coming with me. Alex and Tori are fun but, sometimes, they're out of control."

Mei laughed genuinely amused, "Eh. It's alright. I need to get off my lazy ass once in a while anyways." She took a menu of her own, "But since you offered…if I'm right, this is gonna be a long night for me so I wanna be drunk before I remember how much I hate the club scene."

"Hey! Hey!" Kerry snatched the menu from her friend's hand, "You are NOT getting drunk tonight, you hear?! And you WILL dance with me or more preferably a guy!"

"So much for feeling sorry for me Kerry." Mei muttered under her breath. "But I guess it's my fault for willingly being dragged along with you whores…ouch!" She bitterly rubbed the red area on her hand where Kerry pinched her. "You know Kerry, I hope you get yourself into a situation where some creepy loser wants to dance and you can't get out of it later tonight."

"Aw, how sweet of you! I love you too!" Kerry put on the most innocent smile she could muster. Looking out of the booth, she silently took in her surroundings. Obviously, the second floor was a lounge and bar area. She tried to avoid staring rudely at the couples ardently showing their public affection for each other. How cute…it was disgusting. She could see across the center to the area that was underneath of the DJ box. That meant the VIP lounge was directly above her. When she peered closer to the activities of the other side, she saw that people were giving some kind of light shows with glow sticks to the booths over there.

She pointed to the other side, "Mei! Let's go over there, I wanna see what that stuff is." They both got up and walked closely along the center railings. They had a perfect view of their two other friends who were currently grinding against different partners.

Mei burst out laughing, "Oh my god, she's so nasty!" Kerry laughed too when she caught the inappropriate gestures Tori was flashing them over her partner's shoulder. She laughed even harder when Tori pointed to her side to reveal the dancing couple she was mocking. The girl wearing a tasteless provocative outfit and was making the biggest attempts to being a dirty dancer with her facial expressions and body actions against, what seemed like, her terrified partner.

Not thinking she could take any more of the ridiculous scene, Kerry and Mei sat in their new booth and decided to order fruity drinks. As they waited, a shirtless man tossing and spinning LED lights and neon glow sticks approached them. Kerry stared in awe at the blurred bright lights and felt stupid when she clapped like a little giddy child. When their drinks arrived the performer moved on to the next booth which left the two girls back to facing each other.

"They're staring at us." Mei said so quietly that Kerry wasn't even sure she had said anything at all.

"What?! Who?!" Kerry looked side to side trying to find the culprits.

"Can you be anymore obvious?!" Mei laughed. "Calm down, look at the third floor across from us. There's a group of guys. When you look, don't be so obvious too. Personally, I think some of them are cute especially the one that was looking at you."

"Huh?" Kerry turned her head slowly to try and peak a glance but found her view blocked by a man's chest. "What the…"

"Hey, I couldn't help notice you two ladies sitting alone here. But I was wondering if any of you two would like to dance?" He wasn't extremely attractive but had a very pleasant appearance to him.

"Yup." Mei stretched, "It's all you Kerry, I'll be here when you finish."

"Oh hell no," Kerry reached across the table and pulled Mei out of her seat with her. "She'd love to dance."

"What?!" Mei looked mortified, "Eff you! I refuse!" She crossed her arms defiantly.

The poor guy looked slightly embarrassed or uncomfortable, "If you don't want to dance, maybe you'll let me buy you a couple of drinks? Personally, I got dragged here by my friends and I don't wanna look like a dork sitting by myself while they're out, humping anything with legs." He sheepishly admitted.

And at that, Mei was taken in a heartbeat. "I'm yours for the rest of tonight." Without a back glance, Mei dragged his arm towards the bar area, he smiled and waved goodbye to Kerry.

Kerry decided to head downstairs to find Tori and Alex on the dance floor. Her eyes flatly gazed at the scene before her. Alex and Tori were on top of one of the platforms dancing like mad women as they held onto the center pole. Tori spotted Kerry and waved her to come forward. Letting out an exasperated sigh she struggled towards them.

Alex and Tori jumped down and met her midway. After clearing herself and mind of any forms of shyness, modestly, and care of her physical appearance, she closed her eyes. Kerry allowed her body and soul to get lost into the wave of beats and melody. Her body swayed in sync with the natural rhythm of the atmosphere. She didn't let the small space and close dancers ruin her flow. A smile teased her lips. She really loved dancing because every time she did, waves of confidence possessed her usually insecure personality. Tori ran off after accepting a dance from a male admirer and so it was just Kerry and Alex. Alex was laughing so loudly with her silly movements and looked up to wave at Mei and her temporary date. They had moved to the railing and were watching them with drinks in their hands.

It was disgustingly hot and humid on the floor and Kerry was smack in the middle of it. Her body twirled and, by pure coincidence, caught a glimpse of a group of guys from the third floor staring down at her with full attention. She slowed her movements down and tried to steal another glance almost stumbling when her eyes connected with ice blue for a split second.

Luckily, she was able to play off her tiny fumble with a roll of her hips but it didn't help her heart pounding at an alarming rate. Kerry's mind throbbed with small flashbacks. She shook her head in surprise when she realized she had stopped dancing. Looking up again, the guys were still there, one even winked at her, all but the one she was looking for. Maybe it was a hallucination and didn't really happen at all...probably that Cosmo. She couldn't hold her drinks well anyways.

From above, Mei sensed something wrong and immediately started heading towards the stairs.

Kerry didn't need this. Not now. Not ever. She wasn't going back to those dark times.

Kerry shook her head 'no' to Mei and gave a reassuring smile. She decided to go sit back down for a bit when she was stopped abruptly by a strong hand that grabbed her from behind.

Every muscle in her body tensed in reaction to the foreign touch. Aggravated by the nerve of whoever just grabbed her so rudely, Kerry whipped around to unleash her fury that turned into complete shock. Venom-laced profanity disappeared from her train of thought as she was left speechless at the man who stood before her. Her eyes focused completely on his face without wavering the slightest bit.

A deep chuckle brought her back to reality. Kerry blinked for the first time in what seemed like ages to her. She suddenly felt extremely embarrassed and rude for her open-mouthed staring. Her cheeks flooded pink. He probably thought her a fool. She tried to turn her face away so he wouldn't see her shame, but his thumb and finger caught her by the chin. In contrast to her thoughts, he refused to be denied a full view of her face.

Gasping at the bold gesture, Kerry tried and failed to pull away from the soft, yet, firm grasp. Defeated, she compromised with keeping her eyes lowered and away from his, he smirked. She felt so stupid and was so sure that he was offended by her excellent display of manners, more so the lack of it. But she couldn't help look, his face…his eyes….

"Dance with me?"

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to sta- what?" She mentally hit herself for messing up twice in a row but he laughed again, genuinely amused.

"Dance with me." The commanding tone in his voice made Kerry realize it wasn't a question anymore.

"Please." He added.

Well…at least he was polite about it. Still unsure of her ability to give decent responses, she nodded awkwardly. This time he grinned, obviously very pleased with her answer. He took her hand and led them into the mesh of dancers, not stopping until they were extremely close to the main platform/stage underneath the DJ's room. It was infested with colored lighting that beamed out into the room. Powered by electrical wires, the lights flickered and swarmed the room in sync with the beat of the music. Being so close to them, Kerry's pale skin reflected the colors that the lights flashed.

Blue. Yellow. Green. Purple. Orange. Red.

He finally stopped and turned around to face her once more. She winced. Immediately after, Kerry felt terribly guilty for her sudden knee-jerk reaction. She smiled apologetically at him. He flashed her a dazzling grin, obviously not phased at all.

"Like what you see?"

"I'm really sorry, I don't mean to… you know?" It was a lame excuse but she was being honest.

"It's alright really," He turned her around and placed his hands on her hips from behind. Despite his offhanded dismissal to the situation, Kerry had a feeling that he was only doing this so she didn't have to face him. He was thinking of her even when she was the horrid one.

Regardless, he pulled her extremely close, reminding her that their position wasn't going to hinder anything else he had intended. Kerry blushed violently and even though he couldn't see her from behind, she was secretly thankful that the lights were seemingly stuck on the color red. Still, she almost felt the arrogant grin he wore in response to her shocked jump against his chest. Kerry had to admit, even though she had stared at his face the entire time, peripheral vision enabled her to note the fine structured body that she now had the privilege to have first-hand contact with.

"As much as I know I'll enjoy any sort of company you'll give me, I think maybe we should start dancing. Otherwise we can get off the dance floor and stand like 'this'…," He was referring to their close proximity, "…somewhere else."

She couldn't help laugh aloud. Literally shrugging, she began to sway as she did before. But this time she made sure to keep consistency in her motion so he could be in sync with her. He was a great partner. Kerry usually didn't like dancing with guys because they either, couldn't keep up and ended up bumping into her awkwardly, or they would be so basic that she found herself yawning.

He was different though. He even added his own renditions to change their flow with a smooth transition. Kerry didn't have to lead at all and even playfully challenged his ability to handle her with more bold movements. Sooner than she would've expected, she was grinning like an idiot, forgetting everything around her except the music and him.

The loud energetic music toned down temporarily to a surprisingly familiar song that had a very relaxing melody with a catchy beat. Along with the music, their playful interaction calmed a bit to allow smooth conversation.

"I'm Leon by the way."

"Kerry."

"_It seems I've found my prey tonight."_

He said it in barely a whisper meant to be unheard but she had caught it. Her entire body stiffened, and memories violently flooded back. Sensing her alarm, he turned her abruptly to face her to see what was wrong. She didn't wince this time. She stared in horror but everything made sense now.

She was foolish to have let her guard down over the past years. She should've noticed how too easily she felt inclined to him and the strong attraction to him. That would explain his unnatural glowing hazel eyes. But most importantly it explained how the painful gash that marred one side of his face, was suddenly gone and fully healed. As if nothing there existed.

"Surprised?"

"You're a vampire…" She was shocked at her ability to say it so bluntly, to say it at all even. He shook with mocking laughter.

"Is that why you froze up like a corpse?" His tone had a slight bitter undertone.

Kerry remained silent.

"That's all too funny," He gave her a half smile, this time sympathetic, "I feel like those blood-suckers are too popular these days. I'm starting to think we need to get us some of our own exposure. Get a share of the fame, you know?"

Kerry was confused. 'We. Us. Our own.' What did he mean? Was he actually going to try and say he wasn't a vampire? The signs and characteristics were too uncanny for him to attempt to lie to her. Kerry, after all, actually had intimate confrontation with one in the past.

He looked at her and then chuckled lightly, "I'm guessing you're no different from most then eh?"

She still kept silent but she acknowledged him with a shake of her head no.

"Obviously you believe in vampires." It was a statement but there was a hinted question behind its basic meaning.

She shook her head yes.

"What about Lycans?"

All thoughts in her head stopped immediately. There was no way...

"You know…werewolves?"

She didn't know how to respond. This suddenly became too much for her to comprehend, though she felt as though she never understood anything from the beginning.

"Forget it. I can see you aren't taking this too well so let's just make the best of a dying situation." He suggested hopefully.

"Okay." She gave a weak smile. His eyes widened, seriously taken aback by her calmness and agreement towards his compromise.

"Um…wow." He scratched his head in embarrassment, "I sound stupid right now but I really wasn't expecting that to go so well. Whatever though, I'm glad."

"So what made you decide to come down?" She asked. Kerry remembered seeing Leon as one of the guys looking down at her from the third floor. He was the one who winked at her. In her mind she was forcing herself to put aside her recent discovery. Now wasn't the time and place to ponder on such things, she would wait for later when she had a firm grasp of her own head. If there was a later that is.

"Oh. So you saw me?" He grinned, "Well, I was just scoping around the room for no apparent reason until your two friends caught my eye. Not to be a typical guy but, Jesus! They were torturing every man in this room with the way they worked that pole. But right when I thought I saw everything for the night, you showed up. The way you danced, it wasn't like anyone else. It was like you were in your own world and I'm sure you get this a lot, but you're drop dead gorgeous. I just had to get a taste of the action."

Wow.

"Uh….thank…you….," Was the best response she could muster. She was so confused. Tonight was only getting weirder and weirder.

"Just stating fact." He said. "There's something different about you Kerry, different from all the other girls, and I'm not just saying that either."

"Huh? What do you mean?" She questioned, still confused.

"Out of all the girls I've met in my life, I'm getting this intense vibe from you."

Kerry frowned. Great. Weird auras could be another term for body odor for all Kerry knew.

"Now don't be upset, I meant it in a good way." He added nervously, holding his hands up in peace.

"Leon, you seem like an awesome guy, and I know we decided on keeping things light. But I'm going to have to say that I'm really confused, and scared. I don't know which I am more." Kerry continued when he remained silent.

"Everything that happened tonight….I'm having trouble comprehending. It's not that I don't believe it, it's just…why me? But I feel like I should tell you." She said sheepishly. She turned away, but caught the apologetic look in his hazel eyes.

Well…it was now or never and it was bound to come out sooner or later. He probably knew what she was thinking anyways.

"Yeah, I didn't think we'd be able to put this behind us either." He shrugged.

Suddenly he tensed up, his eyes flickered dangerously. If Kerry wasn't mistaken, she could've sworn he did something not too far from a snarl…like a wolf would.

A werewolf.

"Are you alright?" Kerry asked carefully. He snapped out of his predator-like trance after being reminded of the girl before him.

"Damn...I hate to leave a girl, as beautiful as you, but know it's not my choice." He looked genuinely disappointed.

"What? Not your choice? What are you talking about? Are you leaving?" Kerry asked confused.

"Sorry babe, duty calls. I wish I had more time to beg you for another date though." He grinned like a child.

"You don't have to suck up, if you wanna leave me, just go then. Doesn't matter to me." She said uncaringly, although, deep-down, Kerry was disappointed Leon had to leave.

"It's nothing like that," Leon frowned, "Before I go, I want to know if you'd be interested in a real date sometime. Just say yes or no." He smirked at her shock. "Hey, just 'cause I said I didn't have time to beg doesn't mean I still can't ask you."

"Uh…" She stammered.

"If it's a yes, expect me at your door next Friday at 8PM." He paused for a second and then laughed, "But if it's a no, I'll still be there at 8PM but expect to leave at 9, I'm giving myself an hour to convince you to come out with me."

"Yes?" Kerry didn't even think about her answer, but a response was already out before she could take it back. He laughed at the uncertainty of her voice . But with the options he gave her, she had no choice in the matter.

"See ya Kare!" And he disappeared into the crowd, making his way towards a back hallway near the bathrooms and back exit.

"Kerry!" She looked towards the direction of the shout. It was a very drunk Mei who was holding onto Tori and Alex for support. Kerry pushed through out of the crowd and away from the stage she was next to.

"Oh my god you idiot. I told you not to get drunk!" She took Alex's place under Mei's arm.

"Kerry! Where were you?! We looked everywhere for you!" Tori exclaimed.

"My bad. I got lost." It was a weak excuse.

"Lost? It's a big-ass room with three open floors!" Alex gave her an outraged look which turned into a teasing giggle, "If by lost you mean grinding it up with a hottie, then fine. I approve."

"Mmmmmrrrrgghhhrrmmmm!" Mei's read was rolling side to side.

"Where's her date?" Kerry remembered the guy who shyly approached them earlier.

"He tried to stop her from drinking anymore and she ended up throwing up on his shirt. I'm pretty sure he's still trying to get the smell of vodka and whatever she had for dinner, out of his shirt in the bathroom." Alex hooted with laughter.

"That is so disgusting. Let's just go guys." They all nodded in agreement except for Mei who was nodding because she couldn't help it.

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I revised a little. =D


	2. Cries Of the Moon

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Chapter Two

_Cries of the Moon_

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On their way to the car Kerry realized she hadn't given Leon her number or address. How was he ever going to find her? She didn't even live in the city.

Kerry sighed. At least she didn't have to worry about last minute regrets about the date. He seemed nice enough but after what he told her, she had a feeling this was something she shouldn't involve herself with whether he was crazy or not. After her past experiences, Kerry knew better than to assume logic over the unknown. But if Leon really was what he claimed to be, finding her would probably be no effort at all. She decided that if she ever saw him again she would ask him everything, demand that he tell her everything he knew, and she would try her best to understand in return.

_Werewolves. _

Life was getting bigger and stranger every second. Kerry wondered if she was the only girl to go through these kinds of things, supernatural things.

"Kerry you sit in the back with Mei. I don't want to be the one she throws up on." Alex said jokingly from the driver's seat. Tori jumped into shotgun after securing Mei into her seatbelt.

"Fine." Kerry sighed. She sometimes wondered why hung out with such jerks.

But she knew exactly why.

Kerry smiled.

Even as eccentric as they were, her friends had helped pull her out of the worst times of her life. Back when Kerry was still in her empty lifeless state, she tried to reach out to her long forgotten friends and peers at school. Most were unwilling or unsure to take her back so easily after she had ignored them for so long. Mei was the first who had accepted her back with open arms, Tori and Alex followed soon after.

In the beginning, Alex and Tori tried to drag Kerry along to events with them. Mei was a more reserved type but tagged along anyways. Kerry was unsure about all the parties and nights at first, but once her mind was almost fully clear of the dark ages, she was able to find a love for the crazy nights and allowed herself to loosen up again.

Soon, Kerry was a different person. She was more out-going, more daring, and most importantly, she stopped thinking about that past….up until this night at least. All those memories of that night were fresh in her head again but this time it wasn't in a bad way. She thought of Michel for the first time in months, her first love. Or so she thought.

Three years didn't seem like a lot, but it was. Kerry matured a considerable amount in that time span. What she thought was love at 16, could just have been a mere intrigued fascination with the supernatural…_the supernatural that happened to have been in the form of a very attractive boy._

That entire time, Kerry's perspective on life distorted to include vampires and vampire hunters into the social hierarchy. Was she now to believe that other creatures and categories existed? Honestly, Kerry was surprised to see she had any skepticism left after the Marsala incident.

Her thoughts were killing her.

"Hey Tori are your parents still away?" Kerry asked. She set aside her mental issues to handle the immediate situation.

"Yeah why?" Tori turned around to face the back.

"Mei is in no condition to face her parents like this and my dad isn't expecting me home 'til tomorrow." Kerry replied.

"You guys can sleep over, I have no problem. Alex you coming too?" She turned to face the driver.

"Hmm….yeah sure." Alex turned on the radio. It was weird listening to mainstream pop after being bombarded with underground techno.

Kerry was able to genuinely laugh when Alex and Tori's horrid singing filled the car. Mei on the other hand curled into a fetal position and clamped her hands over her ears, groaning.

"Hey guys, shut up for a second, I need to call Mei's mom to tell her she's sleeping over." She dialed Mei's home phone knowing that her insomniac mother would be awake watching movies, or something of that nature.

"Hello? ….Mrs. Perez! This is Kerry! How are you? ....Really? Sounds exciting, I'll remember to watch that some day…..Yeah, Mei's right next to me. That's actually why I called….No! She's fine, it's just that she fell asleep and she's too heavy to carry….No, you don't have to come pick her up. We're at Tori's house actually and we decided to spend the night, so I'm just calling to let you know…..Okay!.....We will……Thanks, you too…..Okay Goodnight!"

"That went well," Alex thought aloud, "Kerry, you've improved quite a bit. I remember when you couldn't even lie to Ian without getting caught. You were terrible!"

"Gee thanks," Kerry mumbled.

"No really! You were TERRIBLE!" Alex continued.

"Shut up."

"I guess you learned from watching the master. MeeeEE!" Alex laughed, "I'm so proud of my little protégé!"

"I hate you."

Tori turned around to make kissing noises through her puckered lips, "You wuuuuuvvv us!"

"You look ugly when you do that."

Tori glared at her.

Their banter was cut short when Mei let out an ear-piercing cry. Kerry's head snapped towards the direction. The poor girl was thrashing wildly, only restrained by her seat belt.

"Stop the car!" Kerry yelled.

"Kerry! I can't right now! We're still in the city and this is NOT a good place to stop!" Alex cried frantically.

"What's wrong with her Kerry?!" Tori clung to the back of her seat looking terrified at Mei's possessed form.

"Open the window, give her fresh air!" Kerry had no idea what Mei really needed, but she had to do something, "What happened at the club? What did she drink?!"

"She drank what she normally drinks! Nothing was out of the ordinary!" Tori paused for a quick second, "Wait! No! That guy she was with! He kept trying to kiss her and when she gave in, he did something and she pushed him away."

"Yeah! And then she threw up on him right after!" Alex added.

'_Oh my god…no….'_ This seemed to make too much sense to Kerry. "Where did he kiss her!?"

"He was really disgusting and practically slobbered all over her!" Tori grimaced.

"This is no time for jokes! Do you have any idea what he might've done?!" Kerry shouted. Mei had calmed down but now she was whimpering. It was so frustrating to see her friend in pain. Kerry was hoping that this had nothing to do with anything Leon. If it did involve werewolves, Kerry would have no idea how to help her.

"The guy was trying to stop her from drinking so he could hook up with her." Alex added. Kerry took Mei's closest hand. There was nothing out of the ordinary.

Her other hand was something completely different.

Mei's pointer finger looked bruised and darkened and she could feel it throbbing around two puncture marks. _Bite marks._

"_No no no!"_ Although Michel never explained the changing process, or really anything to her, Kerry had a feeling she knew exactly what happened to Mei. That shy man that approached her was a vampire. Kerry didn't know what to do. This was all her fault, if she hadn't forced Mei to go with the guy, this would've never happened! If she had only stayed with Mei and watched out for her….

"We're here, let's get her inside quick!" Alex said.

All three of them worked together to carry Mei out and into the house as comfortably as possible. They cut through the perfectly cut and healthy lawn and carefully climbed the three steps in front of Tori's front door.

Kerry adjusted herself so that she and Alex could support Mei themselves, while Tori fumbled through her bag to find her house keys.

"Shit! I can't find them!" Tori cried.

"You can't be serious Tor!" Alex groaned.

"I don't know! I must've left them in my room, you picked me up 15 minutes early! I was rushing!" Tori defended herself, "I think my window's open, if someone can help me get up to my window out back, I can climb in and open the front door."

"I'll go." Alex volunteered. She look uneasily at Mei's agonized form, she really didn't want to be left alone with such a heart-wrenching sight.

"Hurry guys!" Kerry begged.

The two girls ran to the backyard and left Kerry alone on the front steps with Mei's head rested on her lap.

"Oh Mei…" Kerry's vision grew blurry as tears formed.

"Good. I'm not too late then." A voice said.

Kerry's eyes blinked away the tears to see the intruder.

It was Leon.

He was in front of a sleek black motorcycle he parked hastily in the drive-way. Kerry didn't even remember hearing the bike approach the house.

"How did you…?!" Kerry was so confused. Did he have something to do with this?!

"Leon! It's my friend Mei! She's been bitten by one of them!" Kerry didn't try to hold back the tears that came full force now. "Oh Leon! What am I going to do?! This is all my fault!"

"It's not your fault, it's _theirs_." He climbed all three stairs in one large step. "I sensed something wrong earlier, that's why I left. I found that bastard that bit your friend in the bathroom cleaning his shirt." Kerry gasped. "Don't worry I dealt with him." He looked at Mei, "Now…your friend still has a chance, but you're going to have to trust me."

"Anything." Kerry cried, "Just save her!"

Leon looked grim, "Before you say anything, listen to what I'm going to have to do. I'm going to cut off the area she was bitten."

"_What?!?!_ Her finger? No! You can't!" Kerry looked down to the pained expression of Mei's sweating face. She was losing her color, "Is there anything else?"

"No there isn't, not if you want to keep her a mortal." He looked at her seriously.

"You can't just chop her finger off!" She held Mei's infected hand up to his face.

"That's it? Hmm…it didn't spread much after all…this is a lot simpler than I thought." He sighed in relief, "I'm not going to chop off her entire finger, just where she was bit. Mind you, it's going to be a deep cut but it will heal."

Kerry didn't know what to say but this wasn't her life to give up, so she nodded. He took out a switch-knife, and took Mei's hand. Without hesitation, he cut quickly and efficiently around the punctured wound, Mei cried out in pain. Kerry was trying so hard not to throw up at the sight of gushing blood that poured from her friend's finger.

"Done." He ripped a piece of his shirt and wrapped it around Mei's finger. She was still whimpering but her breathing was steadier and becoming normal.

"Will this work?" Kerry asked hopefully.

"Yes. I can sense her mortality taking over again." He said, Kerry was finally able to get a good look at him. The club was dark and the colored lights failed to reveal the tall tan body that she could now appreciate in the normal lighting. He had a strong face and a complimenting goatee, and there was no doubt he was beyond good looking. His hazel eyes burned his gaze into her, with light brown hair, which was cut stylishly short. All in all, he had a very boyish charm to him.

He suddenly looked behind her and jumped up out of sight. Tori opened the door and gasped at the bloody scene.

"You did not just do what I think you just did Kerry!" Tori yelled.

"What?" Alex appeared from the side of the house, "OH MY GOD! KERRY WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

"You guys just shut up and get her in the house!" Kerry shouted back.

Alex nodded and helped carry Mei inside, "Kerry you can't just cut someone's infected finger like it's a snake-bite!"

"_Yeah it's worse than a snake-bite."_ Kerry muttered bitterly.

"What?" Alex asked.

"Nothing…you guys, try to clean her up and make her comfortable. I forgot something in the car." Kerry set Mei down on the couch and ran back outside to find Leon.

When she was out, he was nowhere to be seen. But she knew he was still around since his bike was still there in the drive-way.

"_Leon!"_ She whispered, a thud from behind made her turn around. She almost had a heart-attack when she saw Leon standing right behind her, grinning.

"Don't scare me like that!" She said bitterly.

"My bad." He laughed.

"Look…" Kerry exhaled, "If it wasn't for you…I don't know what would've…thank you…" She said somewhat coherently. Kerry looked at him, truly grateful.

"No problem, anything for someone as pretty as you." He laughed, but again he tensed up like before.

"Fuck! I'm really getting tired of this shit!" He growled at the empty darkness, "Kerry, I'll see you later."

Before she had a chance to respond, Leon kissed her quickly on the lips. Kerry lost all thought. He just laughed and rode off on his bike. When Leon disappeared from view, Kerry touched her lips, unable to comprehend what just happened.

"Kerry! Get your butt in here! What are you doing?!" Kerry could hear Tori yelling from inside.

_Mei was going to be okay._

That night Kerry stayed up after everyone else was sound asleep. She briefly reverted back to her old self and stared at the ceiling. This time, she was thinking of Leon. He wasn't so bad…she could see herself dating, maybe even liking him. This was under the conditions that she ignored all the supernatural factors. When her thoughts shifted to those factors, she thought about all she knew about werewolves from books and movies. She knew most of the myths were probably untrue after her experience with Michel. But still…

_Michel…_

Kerry's mental image of Leon, transformed into Michel. She wasn't sure what kind of relationship they had. From what she remembered, he rarely told the truth to her if he ever did at all. He could be so cold and distant, and then sweet the next second.

Kerry knew she wasn't going to be able to sleep, so she got up to get some fresh air outside. She sat on the front steps, where Mei's blood once covered before Tori sprayed and bleached it. The cement still had a pink tint to it, which Tori lamented over.

She spent a good amount of time out there. She propped herself halfway up on her elbows and relaxed. The sky looked like a dark veil, embroidered with glimmering stars. Kerry loved Tori's house because it was so secluded and private. It was nothing like Kerry's house, which was in a crowded development.

She assumed the lighter patches of blue were distant galaxies. Blue.

Kerry frowned.

She couldn't help wonder where Michel was right now. Remembering the blue eyes she saw at the club, she was unsure if it really happened

A chilly wind made her shiver, the cold weather pierced through her borrowed sweater and shorts. She turned to go back inside when another voice, this time a hauntingly familiar one, stopped her dead in her tracks.

"Stupid wolves."

Kerry knew that voice all too well. That low, smooth, velvety voice that had left her speechless many time before. Kerry stood there like ice, not knowing what to do. Memories flooded her head. Events that she had stored away were not fresh in her mind.

"It's good to see you again Kerry. Although, it's disappointing to see the type of trash you're associating yourself with."

"Michel…" She said in a whisper, barely audible to the human ears.

But he was no human.

She turned around and there he was, tall and beautiful. His dark, messy-layered hair hid his eyes, but not enough to conceal the icy blue crystals that captivated her three years ago. She didn't realize how much her 16 year old self failed to notice all the details that her matured self could now see. Perhaps, she had just forgotten how beautiful he was, although she found it hard to believe anyone could forget something so spectacular.

He was even more attractive than she remembered. Her memory did him no justice. He was wearing a very stylish suit with a navy silk dress-shirt underneath. It was like he came out of a wonderful movie.

He stood casually on the sidewalk with a hand in one of his pockets. Everything about him just seemed right, even though Kerry knew Michel could pull off anything that others couldn't dream of. But his most striking feature was the fanged smirk that he gave her, his trademark heart-stopper that could get him any woman in the entire universe.

"Are you not happy to see me?" He said in an amused tone.

"Oh Michel!" She ran towards the vampire, wrapping her arms around him.

Emotions and thoughts rampaged too quickly for her to grasp onto. She was in complete shock, but although her mind was numb, Kerry's entire body trembled in nerves that electrified her to the very tips of her fingers and toes.

He didn't attempt to return the embrace, if anything he chuckled in her stranglehold.

"Kerry, you wreak of dogs." He sounded disgusted.

She looked at him with eyes full of hurt from his words and his cold reaction. This seemed to have softened his gaze towards her. He lifted a free hand to touch her cheek. Just as she remembered, they were ice cold, without a single trace of warmth. But regardless of her shaking form, she preferred to freeze to death instead of pulling away.

"What have you gotten yourself into _this time_." Kerry thought he was reprimanding her because of his stern tone, but from the playful look in his eyes. She realized he was joking.

"I went back but you weren't there…," Tears began to form. "I wanted to tell you…"

"Tell me what?" His words held genuine curiosity, he waited for a response.

"I don't know…I don't know…It doesn't matter anymore, you're here now..." She choked.

Kerry buried her face into his chest. The softness of his shirt was comforting, but it wasn't the type of comfort she wanted.

She wasn't expecting anything though, _not from him_. Not after she walked away from him. She was lucky he didn't push her away.

Her body stiffened when she felt a loose arm wrap around her, Kerry's eyes opened wide. After a few minutes, he gently pulled her away to look at her.

"Tell me everything." He demanded.

"Hmm?" She wasn't sure what he meant by everything. Her new life? School? Dad and Ian? Her new friends?

"The Lycan that was with you, and the girl in the house."

Oh.._that _everything.

At the mention of lycans, Kerry was reminded of the incident at the club and rage overtook her. She pushed him away forcefully.

"One of _yours_ bit my friend Mei." She said harshly. "Leon came and saved her just in time."

"Saved her from what? Becoming a monster like me?" He said with equal venom in his voice, then he challenged, "And before you point the finger, have you considered maybe the wolf lied to you?"

"What are you talking about?" She asked.

"I guess your new boyfriend forgot to mention that it was one of HIS that bit the girl. NOT a vampire." He said scathingly.

"What?!" Kerry couldn't believe it.

"Your friend was bitten by a Lycan!" Michel spoke as he grinded his teeth, the word 'lycan' was hissed with obvious hated.

"How can I believe that? Leon saved her! Why would he save her from becoming a Lycan when _he's_ one too!? Plus! You've lied to me so many times before, how can I believe you?!" She said helplessly as realization began to take over.

"It matters not what you believe, but I suggest you watch your tongue before you accuse an entire race," His fake grin showed his resentment to her accusations, "Especially one that doesn't think twice about dealing death to incompetent humans."

Kerry hated how his eyes were viciously narrowed. Michel's last words were calm and composed, but his trembling posture revealed the fury he was suppressing. Kerry searched for a single trace of care or humanity in him, but she couldn't find anything in his unforgiving glare. It was hard to believe the same blue eyes were full of mirth only minutes before.

"What are you doing here anyways?" Kerry asked, exasperated.

"I came here to kill the girl that Lycan sired, but seeing that her transformation was stopped, I'll let her live."

Kerry looked at him horrified. "You were going to kill Mei?!"

"_Was."_ He reminded. "But now it seems that I've gotten something even better out of my original intention."

"What do you mean?" Kerry asked.

"You should know better than anyone, what kind of answer that is." Kerry frowned at his answer.

"Oh yeah…none." Michel grinned at her disappointment. Kerry was happy to see that his eyes had returned to their normal state, and he was no longer unstable with anger.

"Seeing that my plans have changed I'm going to have to go back, my friend is getting quite impatient with me as it is."

"There's someone else here?!" Kerry looked around suddenly scared. "Go back where?!" She didn't like the thought of him leaving.

"Yes, but you won't see him unless he wants you to. Goodbye Kerry." He turned to leave but she grabbed his arm.

"Please don't!" Kerry cried.

"You don't have to worry. My plans require you to be alive so you can sleep easy." He assured her. "You're safe."

"I don't care about that!" Kerry shook her head, "I don't want you to leave…please don't."

Michel smirked, "I see that even when you've changed a significant amount physically, you're still that little girl."

Was that a compliment or an insult? He was so vague….

"I'll be seeing you again soon." He promised.

Kerry shook her head no. She was willing to be immature if that meant keeping him with her. Michel sighed as he ran a hand through his messy hair, frustrated.

If he really wanted to go, he could've just left already, she thought wishfully. She stared at him with determined eyes. In reality, she was still terrified at the danger he emitted from a single glance. Underneath his dark lashes, icy orbs stared at her, but she didn't back down and challenged him with her own glare.

"No." She said quietly, but firmly.

"_Kerry…_" Michel warned.

"I'm not letting yo-" He grabbed the back of her neck and kissed her full force. Leon's couldn't compare to this. She sighed as his lips molded onto hers. Her eyes closed as she took in the sweet scent of expensive cologne. His teeth scraped her bottom lip lightly, his mouth was sweet with a mixed taste of blood…her blood. Right as Kerry was beginning to lose herself in the ecstasy of his kiss. Michel pulled back just as quickly as he approached. She opened her eyes and he was gone. Twice this had happened tonight.

_That bastard….it was a trick._ Kerry felt her heart sink. She frowned and her shoulders fell. She heard his laughter but Kerry knew she wouldn't be able to see him unless he wanted her to.

"Bastard."

"I can still hear you." A response came back.

"I know."

Silence….

She had won a childish victory but she was smug. Kerry returned back to the house. And for the first time in years, she slept soundlessly. She had the same exotic dream that she had years ago, in that closet when she saved his life.

Michel was back. She didn't know what would happen next or what was going on, but he was back and that was all that mattered.

* * *


	3. In the Eyes Of Ice

* * *

Chapter Three

_In the Eyes of Ice_

* * *

"Before I end up smashing someone's face, please remind me WHY we're meeting with those dogs?" An angry fist slammed the dashboard of the car.

"Oh please get over yourself Emiel." A blond-haired woman, who looked no older than 23, sat next to the heated man in the driver's seat. The black Mercedes Benz held four passengers total.

Michel sat in the back with another vampire. His head rested in his palm while he leaned an arm on the window.

"Listen to Cecilia. You've been complaining this entire time and I've just about had it. So just spare yourself and please, shut. UP!" Emiel turned in his seat to say something back, but decided to remain silent after seeing the dangerous look Michel was giving him. When Emiel turned around, Michel closed his eyes and massaged his temples, annoyed with his companions.

Emiel muttered quiet curses under his breath. Cecilia on the other hand, smiled and tried to make eye contact with Michel in the rear-view mirror. Her infatuation for him was obvious, but unfortunately for her, the affection was not mutual. She was too willing, too plain, not in the case of looks of course, all female vampires were gorgeous. Her personality or whatever it was, didn't spark his attention.

"Honestly, why do we have to drive? We could have ran there faster." The vampire next Michel spoke up this time.

"Are you all that simple-minded?" Michel was getting extremely fed up, he expected such a dumb question from Emiel, but not from Logan, who was had a sharper mind. Except this time.

"We don't know the area, and with all those people crowded around, imagine four people just showing up out of nowhere, and then disappearing just as quickly. The whole point of tonight is subtle transaction, we get in and out without making a scene."

"I'm sorry, but I seriously think we could've figured something out," Logan pressed, "Anything is better than sitting in a car and waiting forever."

"We have spent our entire lives waiting. A few hours is nothing in comparison to eternity." Michel said without looking up.

"Yeah well some of us haven't been changed for as long as you have." Emiel said mockingly.

"Oh yes, my apologies. I forgot I was babysitting a bunch of children. I was under the impression you were somewhat on my level of intellect." Michel hissed.

"I wasn't complaining Michel! I agree with everything you say. You ARE one of the strongest and eldest in the coven after all." Cecilia said submissively. She tried too hard to impress him. Michel disliked two things…

Incompetence and suck-ups.

Unfortunately, he had a surplus of both in his company.

Michel just rolled his eyes and continued massaging the constant migraine in his head. He didn't know why he bothered responding to any of the worthless crap that came out of the others' mouths. He decided to return to not saying anything, and tried to block out all sounds.

"What's wrong with you anyways Michel?" Emiel turned around in his seat to face the aggravated form behind him.

"You've never been so bitchy and I've never seen you so agitated before." He pressed, "Don't tell me you're scared of the big bad wolves?!" Emiel laughed at his own joke.

Michel replied with a mocking laugh and but remained wordless. Emiel was somewhat right. Truth was, he was extremely worried but he didn't know why. He knew that he could take care of himself in any situation, although, he couldn't say the same for his companions. Something in him sensed something wasn't right, and after centuries of experience, he learned that his intuition was more than just a mere hunch.

Michel was the second-in-command in his coven because he was one of the older and more experienced vampires. That didn't mean that younger, idiotic vampires like Emiel, still didn't pollute the coven's population. In fact, the coven was full of them.

Since the first existence of vampires, lycans had been around as well, and the two races had been at war from the beginning. Later down the line, human vampire-hunters had grown to become a nuisance. The werewolf-hunters had died out after they assumed they had killed off the last werewolf.

In reality, most humans didn't know that lycans had a human form, and so when the hunters were plentiful, the lycans remained in their human state. But during the full moons, their transformations were uncontrollable so they went far from society days in advance to avoid detection.

Fortunately, lycans could walk in the day and act like regular sociable beings. Unlike their enemies, vampires were limited to the night and could not hide their most striking features like fangs, pale skin, and intense eyes. Not to mention, they needed to feed on human blood. Lycans could live on animals, but vampires could only last so long on such a diet, until they craved the human blood to the point it became a necessity.

All in all, vampires got the worse end of the deal. However, that did not hinder the superiority complex they had over lycans. The wolves were filthy dogs, only a few vampires and Lycans, such as Michel, were there from the beginning to know why the war had even started. But even today, the younger generations were brought up to hate the lycans without reason.

It was under rare occasions like tonight's, that vampires and lycans met together to talk, and JUST talk. Recently following the death of the first Lycan Ruler, the lycans had been split between two supreme leaders. The two leaders were Alois and Aidel, they were brothers but sworn enemies. Alois was extremely cruel and overbearing. Even when their father was alive, he was constantly challenging his authority.

Aidel, who was on the other end of the personality spectrum, was equally just as powerful in strength as Azemof. He, however, was much more passive and reasonable. He wanted to maintain the structure and order their father, Azemof, had established in his reign.

Logically, Aidel was the favorite son and named heir to lead the lycans after Azemof died. Alois was stripped of any right to the throne, and was only tolerated because his father had obeyed his beloved wife's wishes to take care of both her cherished sons. She had died after giving birth to Alois.

Because of his untamed nature, Alois was usually sent on demolition jobs to preoccupy him so he wouldn't cause trouble. Of course, he was under the watch of his brother Aidel, who had extreme amounts of difficulty keeping him in check.

It was because of his brash brother, that werewolf-hunters came into existence centuries ago. Alois was careless, and word of a raging wolf-like creature spread throughout the humans. It was Aidel who had staged the death of a volunteered servant. And for several years, the lycans had to be extremely cautious about changing and where they hunted, to avoid any human contact.

The hunters had assumed there were only a small amount of werewolves that existed. When evidence of the lycans disappeared, the hunters believed they had exterminated the entire race. The scare of complete exposure was finally over. Although myths and legends carried on, all were extorted and bastardized throughout years of oral tradition.

Now that their father was gone, Alois had ignored all previously arranged promises and demanded Asimof's crest, which signified supreme power. He had gained supporters, who were promised council positions should he succeed.

They were usually newer lycans, who were recently sired and knew nothing of the terrors Alois was responsible for. He was sly, conniving, and had no interest in anything else but his own advancement.

The loyal lycans during Azemof's reign, as well as those who did not want to be oppressed by Alois, sided with Aidel. All in all, Aidel had more lycans on his side, but a portion of them were too old to fight the younger, stronger wolves. This made the two sides even.

The reason why vampires were involved in this dispute of power, was because of the treaty made between Claudius, the ruler of the vampires, and Azemof.

The treaty stated that, although the war was still in act, there were limitations and certain neutral zones. This enabled the privacy of both sides and prevention of exposure. If Alois were to gain power, he would more than likely ignore the rules set by the treaty. This would end in mass bloodshed and chaos for all races, human, lycan, and vampire.

It was usually rare for a real fight between lycans and vampires to break out. As long as each stayed on their marked territory, they generally avoided any confrontation.

In the midst of the power dispute, the vampires had agreed to side with Aidel, in order to maintain the limited peace the treaty had established. Claudius stayed inside the coven walls for the most part, dictating from his throne room. Anytime there was a conflict, he sent others to settle things. If the conflicts were extremely important, like this one, he sent Michel. Only few vampires remember the last time Claudius left the coven to personally handle issues. However, that didn't mean he was in any way, weak or incapable. If anything, he was TOO powerful.

Michel and three others were sent to a meeting with a group of Aidel's most trusted supporters. The one that Michel was to talk to was named Leon. He held a high position in the lycan society. That ranking was earned by pure strength and hard work. He was younger than most ranked lycans by a few centuries, but that made him all the more reputable amongst both races.

He was known to be seemingly careless and arrogant, but behind that casual façade was a worthy opponent. This was why Michel had been specifically called for the occasion. Before this week, he was in Europe trying to start a brand new alias there. Though, he personally liked the simplicity of Ethan Bryne as opposed to Lucas Delaquois, it was too dramatic.

"We're here." Cecilia announced.

Michel opened his eyes and nearly scoffed at the ridiculously glamorized exterior of the club. It reflected the lycan personality well, loud and obnoxious. Cecilia drove alongside the curb to the front of the entrance. As everyone got out, Emiel grinned evilly and cracked his knuckles, ready for a fight. Logan rolled his eyes but his tense demeanor, exposed his caution and alertness.

"I'll find somewhere to park and meet up with you guys in a bit." Cecilia said through the rolled window.

"No, just keep driving around, but be ready to pick us up immediately if something goes wrong." Michel said sternly.

Cecilia seemed disappointed at first, but that chagrin quickly turned into hope. "Oh Michel, you don't have to worry about my safety, I'll be with you!"

Michel sighed, he hid his agitation with a charming smile, "Cecilia, you could take care of yourself without me, I know that for a fact. I just don't have that kind of faith in the other two, so it's best we have a fall back plan ready, in case." He winked at her.

If vampires could blush, Cecilia's naturally pale skin would be bright red. She shook her head eagerly and waved good-bye before driving off. Such a shame, Michel thought, she was cute but just not the type not for him. He shrugged and headed towards the bouncer, whose posture had tensed considerably at his arrival.

The giant lycan eyed Michel with glaring eyes, and then examined the other two vampires behind him. He pointed at a door behind him next to the entrance. Michel snorted and flashed a fake smile of thanks. He opened the door but right as he entered, a sudden cold wind stopped him. As a vampire, freezing temperatures didn't phase him. It was the scent it carried that made him stop. Ice blue eyes quickly darted to the source of the sweet scent, something he had never forgotten.

There she was.

The girl who's memory had tormented him all these years. What was she doing here? She was standing there with a group of others, jumping lightly on her feet. She looked extremely cold and agitated but still beautiful nonetheless. If it wasn't for the familiar scent, he would've never believed the young, enticing woman in line, was the same 16-year-old girl from years ago. Humans aged too quickly, but in this case, it was an extremely good thing. She was wearing a fitting black dress and accessories that matched, and quite nicely. Her hair was messy, but somehow, appropriate for the entire picture.

It had been too long since he had felt such an urge. For this instant, Michel felt alive again. Something he had not experienced in centuries. He wanted to take her right there.

"Hah! You hungry too? Their blood is suffocating me, but now's not the time." Emiel laughed, "Geez Michel, I thought of all people, you'd have the most control. I guess the humans get even the best of us." Emiel gave a gentle push forward, to which, Michel replied with an instinctive growl. Why was that bastard acting so cheerful after being so bitchy in the car?

Of course.

He probably thought tonight was going to end in a fight. Fat chance.

That reminded Michel of his original purpose here. He straightened himself out, quietly thanking the heavens that none of his companions, or the lycan, had noticed what had distracted him so. He'd have to remember not to slip up again, because anything could be used as a weakness, and that was something Michel could not afford.

"Right. Let's go." The three walked through the door and up the rusty dark stairwell to yet, another door. Michel's sensitive ears could hear the music clearly through the sound-proof doors. The door opened but he didn't wince when the music came full force, unsuppressed.

It was the top floor and he could see the DJ directly across from them, completely unaware of everything around him, bobbing in place as he switched CDs and played with the switches and knobs on his board. For a dog, he had good taste in music, Michel had to admit. The lights, at this point, were going wild from the giant system in the middle of the ceiling. The room that Michel, Emiel, and Logan had entered, was dimly lit and had red carpeting with black couches and tables. There was a bar where the bartender glared at them from, but that mattered litter to the vampires.

Their focus lied on the large group of werewolves sitting casually on the sofas. Some of them had scanty women on their laps performing various provocative gestures. Leon was the easiest to spot out. He wasn't the biggest or strongest looking, but he had a stupid grin on his face, unlike all the others that were growling at the intruders.

"Glad you could make it." Leon stood up, "Don't just stand there, sit anywhere ya' want." He held a hand to all the empty seats next to the lycans.

Michel flashed an equally disarming grin and sat down on the only single seat, conveniently placed the furthest from Leon. Emiel and Logan who refused to sit next to the lycans, stood firmly on either side of Michel.

"Well, we know why we're all here. So let's make this as short as possible?" Leon laughed from across the table.

"You've read my mind." Michel responded, genuinely laughing this time. Leon threw up a hand, and with two fingers, gestured drinks to be served to his unusual guests.

"Basically, Alois is back in town and apparently he has some new secret weapon." Leon said, now with a serious face. He leaned forward, "We've tried to send some of our own undercover, but so far we haven't received word back from any of them."

"And you want us to find out what you couldn't?" Michel mocked.

'_So the lycans want us to do their dirty work. Hah. When they can't even do it themselves? How sad_.'

"And why should WE do YOUR dirty job?!" Emiel shouted.

_Maybe the boy wasn't a complete idiot after all. _

Michel stayed silent and looked back at Leon, clearly amused, waiting for the response.

"So far, even our best haven't been able to succeed. So…we have to reach out to our other sources." Leon muttered. Michel wanted to laugh aloud, so the wolf _did_ have his buttons. So much for all the fake smiles and feigned casualness.

"We'll find out what it is." Michel relaxed in his seat with a smile on the corner of his lips. He enjoyed these small victories.

"Great." Leon replied with a bitter grin, but his brow was furrowed, showing the disdain he had for admitting the need for help.

The woman who brought the drinks for the vampires was a human. She set down the drinks on the table and smiled coyly at Michel, who didn't give her a single glance. She frowned, and Emiel laughed. The server than approached Leon and whispered into his ear, although there was no point because everyone there could hear her, including the bartender.

"_I don't know what he meant, but Bryant says one of Alois's boys is here somewhere. He didn't want_ _to pull him aside and make a big scene, but he wanted me to give you a heads up."_

Leon nodded and she walked away.

He stood up and looked over the railing behind his seat, scanning the room. The other lycans did likewise. Extremely interested in how the lycans would handle the situation, Michel followed suit. Emiel and Logan however stood by the door.

"You two, get to the car. I'll be down in a little bit." Michel looked back. Without a second thought Logan left but Emiel lingered, probably disappointed about leaving a possible fight. But he left shortly after, grumbling more curses under his breath. The boy was an idiot, but he knew better than to challenge Michel's authority.

As Michel scanned over the crowd, he found what all the others were staring at, a young lycan approaching a booth where two women were sitting in.

_Her again?!_

Michel's body froze. No. He wanted to run down there, and rip the man to shreds but he had to be patient. He couldn't let the lycans know of any history between him and Kerry. She had to stay out of this at all costs. He relaxed when he saw that the other girl left with the wolf instead.

His eyes followed his girl to the dance floor where she moved in such a way that made him want to groan. She was killing him the way she moved her body. She stood out of all the other women in the club, and it seemed as though all the other wolves around him had noticed her too.

He was shocked when he noticed that for a split second, their eyes locked. Did she see him? He couldn't risk it.

"I'm going to follow that Lycan." Michel stepped away from the railing towards the door, as Leon and the others continued to look at Kerry. The bastard even winked at her. Leon turned around to face Michel.

"Hey I'll go with you, there's a faster way down anyways," He pointed to the corner of the room that had stairs leading directly to the second floor. Michel nodded and followed Leon down.

He spotted Alois's wolf standing beside the other girl, looking down at the dance floor. Leon walked the opposite direction.

"On second thought, I think you've got this handled. I'm gonna go down and try to get me some. You probably know which one too." Leon smirked.

Rage overtook Michel as the thought of Kerry in Leon's arms, flashed through his mind.

_Never. _

_She was his._

He struck Leon's face with a quick instinctive swipe. Leon, cried in pain. His hand flew up to touch the torn gash in his face.

"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR?!" He had his fist readied for a fight. Michel inwardly cursed himself for such a brash action.

"I'm just aggravated that in a time like this, you're thinking of such menial things." Michel said offhandedly, "Think with your mind, not with your fuckin dick, wolf."

"Just because I can appreciate a fine body, you fuckin try to rip my face off?!" Leon shouted in offense, "Don't take me for an idiot. I saw you looking at her too! And it was definitely more than just the average intrigue!"

Damn. The wolf WAS smart.

"You don't know what you're talking about." Michel walked away, trying to avoid anymore confrontation on the subject.

Leon cursed a long line of profanity as he continued the rest of the stairs to the main dance floor. From the second floor, Michel could see him make his way towards Kerry's retreating form. He growled when the wolf laid his filthy hand on her shoulder. He was satisfied by the terrified look in her eyes, as she stared at the large gash Michel had made in Leon's face. Michel's smug expression quickly faded into anger when he saw her take Leon's hand into the crowd. When Kerry had her back against Leon, the wolf looked up to meet eyes with Michel and then flashed him the cockiest grin ever.

_Why that little…._

Blood?

The smell of blood hit Michel's nose and made him forget the petty fight between him and Leon. He wanted to punch himself for being so careless. He had completely forgotten about Alois's wolf. He turned around to see the girl sitting at the bar alone, clutching her hand. She had been bitten. In the corner of his eye, he caught the lycan descending the stairs on the other side, towards the bathrooms. The girl had thrown up on him. He would deal with the girl later. Michel quickly followed the wolf.

On his way across the first floor, he ran into Leon. He must've sensed the girl had been bitten as well.

"I'll deal with this one." Michel said, pushing him aside. "The girl is upstairs."

"Be my guest, try to be clean," Leon joked, "By the way. I got a date with Kerry."

Michel stopped in his tracks and turned around, trying to hide the fury in his eyes. He smiled, "Who's Kerry?"

Leon scoffed and headed upstairs.

He could hear the lycan cursing through the bathroom doors. After he quietly entered, he made sure to lock the door behind him.

"Fuckin bitch. I wreak of throw-up, this is so disgusting." The lycan was over the sink counter, trying to clean his shirt, when he saw Michel approach him.

"What the!!! Vampire?! Here?!!! How did I not sense you?!!" He looked terrified.

Michel just glared coldly and attacked in a split second. He snapped the wolf's neck clean, and efficiently. He crinkled his nose in disgust as the putrid smell of the dog's blood hit his nose. He sensed other lycans outside the doors, and as he left he joked, "Sorry, couldn't contain myself. I made quite a mess, so try to clean up as much as possible." Which he ended with two degrading clicks of his tongue.

He chose to ignore the various insults that stormed behind him as he walked away.

His next priority was to find Kerry, but she had disappeared. The bitten girl was also gone from the room, as well as Leon. Michel frowned. He pushed through the crowd effortlessly, and exited the club.

Cecilia was outside waiting for him with the two others in the back, but he shook his head no. She stared at him in confusion but he didn't care. As soon as he was a good distance from the crowd of people, he sprinted off to get to Kerry before Leon did. He wasn't completely sure, but he had a feeling that's where the wolf was headed. He knew that Logan was now following him, but Michel was faster.

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	4. Howls of the Night

I know I haven't posted in a while but meh. Please read and hopefully you'll enjoy this chapter or hate it.

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Chapter 4

_Howls of the Night_

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Kerry pushed the diced vegetables around with her fork. She had lost her appetite over the last couple of days after everything she had gone through. Mei made a complete recovery and chose to repress what happened at the club last week.

She also decided to ignore every call Kerry made to her house and cellphone.

With Alex and Tori away in Pennsylvania on a ski trip with their other friends, Kerry was alone for the weekend.

It had been a while since Kerry stayed home on a Friday night. Her dad was so happy to finally have a dinner with Kerry present, that he went all out on making dinner. It was unfortunate all his delicious food was going to waste, for Kerry was experiencing an all-too-familiar anxiety. Michel never showed up again after the incident and she was beginning to think seeing him was just another one of her dreams.

"Sweetie, are you okay? You haven't even touched your food yet." Joanne asked with seemingly genuine concern.

Kerry was surprised her soon-to-be-step-mom noticed, seeing that she was flirting with her dad the entire dinner. Although everyone thought Joanne was the nicest woman in the world, Kerry knew it was all a front to get into the Nowicki Household. She only held her tongue so as not to upset her dad, who was completely head- over-heels with his fiancé.

"I'm feeling a little sick," Kerry said quietly as she pushed her plate of food away. "I'm gonna go to my room and lay down."

"Are you alright Ker?" Her dad's face was etched with worry, "Maybe I could make you some soup or something?"

"No dad, I just have a small headache…it's nothing a nap won't fix." She managed to force a smile to reassure her dad. Before anyone else could protest Kerry emptied her plate into the trash. She quickly rinsed any remaining debris and placed it into the dishwasher.

As she walked up the stairs she could hear Ian asking, "What's nauseous?"

Once she made it to her room she flung herself onto her comfortable bed, Kerry signed in relief. Without opening her eyes, she reached over to her nightstand for her iPod.

The first song that played was too gloomy to listen to in her current state. She clicked next and was satisfied when "Love" by Keyshia Cole came on.

"_Love. Never knew what I was missing, but I knew once we started kissing, I found you_." She hummed the melody of the song and as it progressed, she felt herself drifting into sleep.

* * *

*TAP*

Hearing a noise at her window Kerry stirred in the mess of covers but only rolled onto her side and went back to sleep.

*TAP*

Kerry groggily opened her eyes, but closed them again assuming it was a branch hitting her window. "Freakin….tree….." She mumbled.

*TAP*

"Oh my freakin god….." Kerry covered her head with a pillow.

*TAP*

At this point Kerry was wide awake. Not so much because of the noise itself, but because she had remembered there was no tree outside her window.

Inching towards the window, Kerry peaked through the blinds to see what was causing the noise.

"What the…! Leon?!" Kerry gasped aloud.

He was standing in her backyard with only a long sleeve shirt and ripped jeans. She couldn't tell if they were purposely torn.

Leon grinned at her when she opened her window to stick her head out.

"Hey babe!"

"Shhhh! Don't be so loud!" Kerry whispered, "My dad will kill me if he sees you. What are you doing here?" Kerry looked nervously side to side to see if anyone might have seen her guest. The last thing she needed was her neighbors scolding her father about letting boys hanging around at night.

"Mind if I come up?" Leon was smiling. _Sure, it was easy to be in such a good mood if he wasn't in danger of being grounded for life._

"What?!" Kerry choked, "Stay there! I'll come outside."

"You can if you want," Leon laughed, "but the chances of us being caught are less likely if I come in."

"Ugh….fine." Kerry was about to turn around towards her door when a soft thud behind her caught her attention. Leon was literally three inches from her face, causing her to squeal and fall backwards onto her bed.

"Did I scare you babe?" He flashed her an irresistible grin.

"How did you get in here?!" Kerry was still recovering from her shock.

"Wolfboy, remember?"

"Oh…I forgot about that…" Kerry turned away, embarrassed for forgetting something so crucial.

"Oh yeah, hard to remember the little things." He said dryly.

Even though his voice was sarcastic, Kerry could tell by the ways his eyes showed mirth that he wasn't at all offended.

He flopped down on her bed next to her and grabbed her iPod. Kerry noticed Leon's nails were sharper than normal as he browsed through her songs.

"Sex Therapy?" His seemed surprised.

"I swear I didn't put that song on there!" Kerry quickly defended herself. Her cheeks were flushing red.

"Don't play coy, I love freaky girls." Leon said suggestively, moving closer to her.

"Excuse me?!!!" Kerry had her hand ready to slap him.

"Hey hey hey! It was a joke! Sheesh, and you were complaining about ME being too loud." He held out his hands in a display of mercy. She noticed he did that a lot. T_he boy was probably used to offending girls. Hmph. _

"You never answered my question," Kerry said seriously, "Why are you here anyways?"

"Ker, I'm hurt. Did you really forget?" Leon tried to muster up the best puppy dog face he could. He could have succeeded if his eyes didn't betray him once again.

"I'm sorry, I guess I did." Unaffected by his attempt, Kerry eyed him suspiciously thinking about everything Michel had told her.

"It's Friday." Leon said bluntly.

"Yeah…..so?" Kerry was confused.

"Don't tell me you forgot about the date you promised me?!" He said with feigned hurt.

"What da-…oh my god!" Kerry distantly remembered saying yes to his proposal, but she never thought it really was going to happen. He didn't have her phone number, or her address….

"Wait…" Kerry started, "How did you find me?"

Leon simply tapped his nose.

"You smell like delicious treat." He licked his lips.

"Um wow….down boy." Kerry pushed him away.

Leon didn't bother resisting and fell into a comfortable laying position on her bed. He tucked his arms behind his head, "You haven't seen the worst yet." Leon replied, winking at her.

Kerry turned around to look at the alarm clock on her night stand.

11:35PM.

At this point, her entire family was bound to be asleep since an hour ago. Kerry relaxed now that she was sure that no one else saw Leon.

"It's almost midnight, that's way too late to go out. I'd get in so much trouble." Kerry apologized to the man who seemed to be sleeping in her bed right now.

"That's bull." Leon scoffed, "If I met you in a library, fat chance I'd be there, but I'd probably believe you more as the daddy's girl you're playing off to be." Leon frowned, opening his eyes he eyed her with scrutiny.

_He thought it was a lame excuse?_

"Do you think I'm kidding?!" Kerry asked.

"It's hard to think you'll be grounded for going out on a date with ONE lycan when you were out at a club with MULTIPLE lycans AND bloodsuckers." He scoffed.

"Don't have such a hissy fit," Kerry laughed, she understood where his suspicion came from. "First off, my dad knows nothing about vampires or werewolves and it's going to stay that way." She gave him a stern glance. "Secondly, he thought I was sleeping over a friend's house that night and THAT is going to stay that way too!"

Leon dramatically placed his hand over his heart and gasped, "Kerry?! You LIED to your own father?!"

"Shut up." Kerry laughed as she lightly punched his arm.

"At least I won't feel guilty now." Leon smirked. He got up to stand on his feet. As he stretched his arms over his head with a yawn, Kerry noticed how built he was. His muscles were visibly toned even through his thick shirt.

When she heard him cough, Kerry was interrupted from her prying gaze to find out he was grinning like an idiot. She was caught in her act and quickly turned her face in a vain attempt to cover up her wandering eyes. Her face was burning with shame but Leon simply chuckled gently.

"Guilty about what?" Kerry abruptly asked to break the awkward silence.

"Well, I would've felt like an ass for dragging a girl out when she wasn't allowed," He stopped when Kerry quirked an eyebrow in inquiry, "But seeing that you're such an awful daughter anyways, I don't think I don't feel like I'm doing anything wrong." He finished quickly.

"You flatter me…" Kerry's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Nothing is open at this time anyway, we'd have nothing to do. And I'm not looking forward to a walk along the beach in 0 degree weather."

"We can always go into the city and hit up the clubs." He joked, "Although I don't know if you're a clubbing type of girl, you seem more like the shy, quiet type."

If only Leon had known her a few years ago, he would've realized how right his last statement was.

Kerry rolled her eyes at him. "Yeah, I'm kind of turned off by clubs until I'm fifty."

"So what _does_ turn you on?" Leon asked seriously.

His hands of peace were up before she could raise a hand or open her mouth for a scolding.

"Just kidding." He stuck his tongue out at her, "No I actually have something else in mind."

"Like….?" Kerry asked.

"That would ruin the surprise." He winked at her. Leon had this boyish charm about him that made it impossible for Kerry to be mad at him. She especially loved the way he would grin at her, a sort of lazy smile that partially revealed his pearly white teeth. She wondered if his fangs were as noticeable as Michel's.

Kerry glanced at her clock again to see it was 11:58PM. A thought crossed her mind that made her feel uneasy. Leon must have noticed because he placed a hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"Well…it's almost midnight, don't werewolves….turn into some crazy beast?" As awkward and lame the question came out, it was a real concern she was thinking about.

"Shit….the full moon!" Leon's face revealed pure panic as he quickly turned to face the window. "Kerry quick! Get away from me!" He stumbled away from her to the center of her room.

11:59PM

Leon clutched his sides and began to groan in pain, shaking terribly. Kerry's eyes widened in fear.

Midnight.

He growled from his hunched position and jumped at her with a snarl.

Kerry's scream was muffled by a hand. Kerry opened her eyes to see that Leon was on the verge of dying of laughter. His attempts to stifle his outburst actually made him louder.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Kerry punched him as hard as she could in the chest. She ended up hurting herself while Leon didn't seem to feel anything. "YOU'RE SUCH AN ASS-" She paused when she heard noises down the hallway. She waited, but no one came. "Hole…" She hissed.

"I couldn't help it, I'm sorry." Leon smiled sympathetically, although his eyes said he wasn't really sorry, "….Your face though! Priceless!" He doubled over, shaking with silent laughter. He quickly composed himself when he saw the death stare Kerry was burning into his head.

"Aw Ker," He ruffled her hair which riled her up even more, "You were in no danger, I'm not that careless. The full moon isn't for another week anyways." He comforted her. "Also, I'd never hurt you." He said this part gently as he hooked his finger under her chin to make her face him.

Kerry would have been lost in his hazel gaze if his smirk did not bring her back to reality.

Averting her eyes to everything else around him Kerry sheepishly asked, "So you DO change on a full moon?"

"Well yes, but not in the way most people think." He scratched the back of his head obviously having trouble explaining what he meant. It was the first time he looked unsure of himself.

"I mean like…." He paused, "I won't turn into some ugly-ass hairy man-beast or whatever. I could if I wanted too…I think? But for the most part we just turn into regular wolves."

"What do you mean 'you think you could'?" Kerry asked, she was more so startled about how easily he told her his lycan secrets.

"Well, there's like different forms a lycan can take, actually, scratch that….stages would be a better term for it." He was satisfied with his answer.

"Stages of a wolf right?"

"Yeah, pretty much." He smiled awkwardly.

"And you can stop it at any stage?" Kerry pressed. She wanted to know as much about what she was potentially up against, or getting herself involved with in the case of Leon.

"I guess yeah…" He started, "But every stage you are away from being completely wolf or man, the more unstable you are." He looked uneasy. "You're torn between the mindset of rationality and primal urge which causes a sort of crazed state. The chances of exposure are too high so we prefer to be either or, never in between." He looked deep in thought for a moment, "In fact, I think it's forbidden for lower ranked lycans to change into those in between stages."

"Lower werewolves?" Kerry was astonished. She never thought that there was some sort of hierarchy in the supernatural society. Did vampires have a hierarchy as well?

"Yeah," Leon stared at her for a minute, "You're just curious today aren't you?"

"I'm sorry." She quickly spit out on reflex. "I'm actually surprised you're answering them."

"Why wouldn't I?" He was puzzled.

"Well…um," She staggered, "Don't you have some sort of lycan secrets that the outside world isn't allowed know?"

"For the most part, the 'outside world' doesn't know we exist, and the way I see it," he continued, "The more someone knows about us, the less they're likely to do something to piss us off. There's honestly nothing we're scared of and we're more of a danger to everything else if anything."

"I see…" Kerry mused.

"Heh," Leon smirked, "I think I know where that one came from."

"Huh?" Kerry looked up to him.

"I know you've been around the bloodsuckers before," He answered, "Those mutherfuckers are so tight in the ass. We're way different from them, we don't cower in the shadows."

"They don't really have a choice in that matter…"Kerry defended.

"Whatever," He said offhandedly, "Hey you look tired. Why don't you go back to sleep tonight and we'll go a different time."

She had offended him.

"I hope you're not mad at me." Kerry added quickly. "I mean, I know you guys don't get along but I dunno…" She didn't know what else to say.

"It has nothing to do with that Ker," Leon took her hand and kissed her palm. She blushed. "It's already past twelve and I don't know if I'll have you back before your parents wake up."

"It's my dad and his girlfriend," Kerry corrected, "But yeah, you're right. He wakes up pretty early. Sorry for ruining your plans tonight." She apologized.

"Don't sweat it babe, you didn't ruin anything. I had fun talking to you." He responded.

"…Me too." Kerry agreed. And she really meant it. Leon was starting to grow on her.

"Hey if you're not doing anything tomorrow, I'll pick you up around 10AM and we'll have the entire day." Leon suggested.

"Day? Don't you…" Kerry quickly stopped herself, "Oh right."

"You did NOT just compare me to a bloodsucker." Leon said disgusted, "Ugh Ker, come on now!"

"I'm sorry!" Kerry defended herself, "I'm not used to all of this yet!"

"I know I know." He grinned.

Before she had a chance to say anything, Leon's hand had moved to the back of her head and pulled her into a kiss.

Out of pure shock she didn't respond for a few seconds. Slowly she lost herself to him. He was so warm, and this wasn't like the quick peck he gave her before. He was gentle but held the control. Feeling his warm tongue trace her lips sent sensations throughout her body that she couldn't explain. The only other time a kiss made her feel this way was when….

_Michel._

Kerry suddenly pulled away from Leon.

"Sorry." She mumbled.

"Too soon?" He joked, but she could tell he was disappointed.

"Something like that…" Kerry lamely responded.

"I should go now," Leon leaned in for another kiss, but he quickly stopped himself and gave her a quick kiss on top of her head.

Kerry refused to look at him, she felt too guilty for what she did. Although, technically she was not dating Michel, she still felt like she was betraying him. She didn't know what to call what was going on between the two of them….if there really was anything.

"I'll be here tomorrow morning." He lingered for a bit and hesitantly let go of her hand.

Leon closed the window as far as he could from the outside and then jumped out of sight.

Words couldn't explain how despicable Kerry felt, not solely because of the kiss but because she couldn't deny enjoying it.

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Please Review! Also, much love to my beta reader Aideekay! 333 I promise Michel will pop out soon. xD


	5. Lunar Child

Chapter Five

Lunar Child

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"Go away." Michel slammed the door behind him before the others could follow.

Even through the sound-proof doors he could hear their muffled complaints.

"_Fuck you!"_

"_Shut up Emiel!"_

"_Don't tell me what to do bitch!"_

"_Both of you shut up!"_

"_Who made YOU in charge?!" _

He rolled his eyes at their obnoxious stupidity. His gaze was drawn to a sleeping form in the center of the dark room. A woman in her mid-twenties was lying on a king-sized bed. Her mid-length dirty-blonde hair was spread out over the black, silk-covered pillows. She laid there on her side, but even though her chest rose and fell at a calm pace, the look of distress her face bore was evidence of an induced slumber.

It was kind of the elder to arrange this human for him, but he preferred to hunt by himself. The challenge of the kill made the blood much more enjoyable. Not to mention, this human was an innocent being, he could tell by her untainted scent. Although he had no limitations on what kind of people he drank from, he made specific qualifications for his kills. It wasn't that he was soft-hearted or moral, it was purely the fact that the memories and lifesource of the corrupt suited his taste. One thing Michel hated was to feel the vulnerability from the lives of the good.

"Although I'm grateful for your generosity, I must refuse." Michel said aloud.

The room remained quiet and still. For a while the only noises were the soft breaths of the sleeping body.

A small chuckle broke the silence as a form appeared from the shadows of his room.

"Ah Michel," An older man spoke, "You should really try the blood of an innocent. Their pure thoughts create such foreign feelings that we cannot experience otherwise."

"That is the exact reason I avoid them sire," Michel lowered his head in respect, "Their emotions can cause doubts, hesitations, or even regret during an assignment. I pride myself in being quick and efficient, and I do not plan on ever making any mistakes."

Vampires were supposed to be the epitome of all that was dark and corrupt. They were masters of seduction and could control human immorality effortlessly. Given a few seconds, they could have even the strongest wills to bend to every whim and command.

Anytime a lifesource wass consumed, an individual found their self in a temporary mentality of that human. The inexperienced vampires often suffered the consequences of the side effects. It was typical for a newly changed vampire to commit suicide after slaying an innocent out of grief and guilt.

"Yes I suppose," The other man nodded, "In your line of work, sentiment is something that is best left avoided. I sometimes miss my days of youth, where protocol and convention were nonexistent…" He paused to reminisce the past, "…tell me, has the human world changed much?"

"Although their technology has vastly improved, it amuses me to admit that the overall intelligence of the average human has degenerated." Michel chuckled.

"I may judge that for myself one day." The other man nodded.

This vampire had a sense of regality surrounding him. Even though other vampires were updated to the most recent fashion styles, his time period was still evident through the elaborate robe he wore and the ancient jewelry that adorned his body. His long hair was jet black with few streaks of white that revealed his true age.

"Lord Claudius," Michel lifted his head to look his leader in the eye, "One of the lycans tried to sire a human earlier this night, whether it was intentional or not I really do not know."

Claudius was the supreme ruler of all covens around the world. His residence in Michel's coven made it the strongest influence among the Dark World. His calm and seemingly gentle appearance was all a façade. Beneath the kind exterior was a twisted sadist that was feared by all. Claudius tortured innocents, dragging out their deaths so when he drank from their veins, the only emotions left were fear, anguish, and despair. After an entire lifetime of doing this, he no longer empathized with his victims but found pleasure in the gloom.

"Oh?" Michel's leader did not seem too surprised.

"But the part that really intrigued me was that her transformation was able to be stopped." Michel said.

He frowned when Claudius smiled. Michel didn't think his elder was taking the situation seriously…a halted turning was never heard of. Claudius on the other hand stroked his long beard as he walked towards the other end of the room to stare at a painting.

"Could the wolves have finally found the Lunar Child?" Claudius pondered as his elegant finger traced the contours of the portrait.

"Lunar Child?" Michel asked, "Who is that?"

"The Lunar Child isn't a person…it is a plant…a very small tree to be exact. It has healing properties that they say could even bring back the dead." His sharp nail pierced through the canvas, "Oh dear…how clumsy of me."

Claudius turned away from the painting and went towards the book shelf. He pulled one out at random and flipped through the pages. Michel stayed where he was, his hands clenched with irritation.

"Why haven't I ever heard of this before?" Michel demanded. Whether he was in front of a leader or not, he refused to be kept in the dark about anything, especially something that could potentially be used against him.

"It is said to be a myth, however, only the first of our kinds ever knew of its existence. But after the Host died, so did the Child. It never appeared onto the Earth's surface again."

"What is a Host?" Michel pressed.

He was frustrated thinking about all the other untold secrets he also did not know about. Michel was one of the oldest vampires in the coven, but anything that had happened before his time was supposed to be recorded into the archives, which he had already read in his earlier years. However, he never came across any mentioning of a Lunar Child or Host.

"The Host is a person," Claudius laughed, "A Lunar Child can only exist when its Host breaths life. Only a Host can bring out the true powers of the tree. A simple way to describe the extent of these powers is that it can be used to revive an entire city, or devastate an entire country. It's far easier to take life than to give."

"If these two things had such a potential, why was it kept a secret?" Michel asked.

"It was never a secret… there was just no point in talking about it once the Host died. It could take centuries…even more, for a new Host to be reborn, and it's not a guarantee that they will appear even after then."

"During how many of them did you live through?" Michel asked. He was now starting to question Claudius's true age.

"Only one, and the previous Host lived three million years before mine. Although I may be old, there are still some things that surpass my age." Claudius smiled.

"So how do you know all this." Michel asked.

_Three million years?! _

"The Seers of course." Claudius sat down in an armchair next to a window of stained glass.

Michel knew about the Seers. They were mystical beings who knew the beginnings of the universe and foresaw the end. Magical as they may be, they were as fragile as humans. They were killed off for their satanic "black magic" as the God-fearing humans called it.

"Could this be the secret weapon that Alois has?"

"If it is…then I very well hope he doesn't find the host or we are all doomed." Claudius looked grave as he faced outside the window. "But that is very unlikely since the Host could be anywhere in the world, and if they already had him we would've known by now. I'm personally not too worried about that possibility."

"How can I find the host?"

Regardless of the low chances, Michel decided it was best to prevent something with that kind of destructive power to fall into the hands of the lycans, or anyone for that matter. He personally didn't care for possessing ultimate power and if he killed the Host, the Child would die as well.

"If a Host finds its Lunar Child, its flowers will turn to crystal. It is really as simple as that. But I suggest you focus on resolving the issues with the lycans, don't waste your time looking for the needle in the haystack, it's impossible to find a Host without the Seers."

The woman in the bed began to stir. Claudius snapped his head in her direction and on reflex his fangs lengthened as a ghastly hiss escaped his lips.

"If you have nothing else to say then be gone." Claudius never took his eyes off the woman who was beginning to wake up.

It must have been a while since Claudius had taken a life for him to act out on such an impulse. Michel knew not to disturb or irritate a vampire in the middle of a kill.

Before he left, Michel bowed in respect and closed the door tightly behind him. As he walked away he heard a vicious snarl and a blood-curdling scream that was cut short.

Michel had a bad feeling about everything after learning about the Lunar Child, more importantly…_how the hell did that bastard Leon have a part of it?_

"I know you're there." Michel said through clenched teeth.

"What's with the hostility?" Logan smirked as he appeared from around the corner.

"I don't have time to play around so get lost." Michel walked past him through the dark corridors. His footsteps were silent on the blood-red velvet carpet.

"I heard everything," Logan caught up and kept pace with Michel, "You get so butt hurt whenever someone else knows something you don't. This is something you couldn't help. He's like what… a few thousands of years older than you? It's not surprising that there's something you didn't hear about in that amount of time."

"Did I ask you for your opinion?" Michel glared at his friend.

Logan almost walked past the stairway Michel suddenly turned into.

"Hey! Wait up!" He yelled as he scrambled down the steps.

"Go away." Michel replied.

"You're going to that girl aren't you?" Logan sneered.

Michel stopped. Logan almost ran into his back. Within a split second Logan was hanging by his collar against the wall.

"Don't. Ever. Mention. Her." Michel let him go.

Vampire reflex prevented Logan from falling on his bottom.

"Geez, you sound like an abusive husband." Logan snickered. He adjusted her shirt and patted out the wrinkles Michel left.

Michel leaned in the middle of the stairway on the railing. Folding his arms over his chest he smirked, "And what are you…the weak, helpless wife?"

"It'll be a cold day in hell when you get a wife." Logan grinned. He sat down on one of the steps.

"So what's up with 'you-know-who' anyways?"

"What did I just tell you?!" Michel snarled.

"Calm down, nobody's around." Logan assured him.

He was right, the closest being around was Claudius, but he would hear nothing while he was feeding.

"Besides, I saw how you sucked her face and it wasn't the typical hook up."

"Pfft. She's just some girl I met in the past. She…helped me. You remember that whole Marsala ordeal I told you about?"

"I remember you getting fucked up by vampire hunters but you forgot to mention you were saved by a LITTLE GIRL!" Logan doubled over laughing.

Michel gave him a good kick that sent him sprawling on the stairs.

"I didn't need her help, I would've killed them myself right then and there but her being there made things difficult. They wouldn't have killed her, Marsala would've, but not the ones in the laundry mat. So I figured if she was released she could be my cover up, but the little idiot went and tried to be a hero. If a teenage girl disappeared, it'd be all over the news, and so it was better off she lived."

"There's more to that story isn't there?" Logan said flatly.

"Nothing else to say," Michel began walking down the steps again. "She tried to help, and even though I didn't need it, I repaid her back by keeping her a secret. If the others knew, she'd be killed for knowing."

Michel gave Logan a look that warned him that he intended to keep Kerry a secret, at all costs.

Logan made a motion that looked like he was zipping his mouth.

"You better." Michel walked into the main hallway towards the front door. "And if you must know, I'm going out to eat."

"Chinese take-out?" Logan joked darkly.

Michel merely grinned.

"Nah, it's too close to sunrise, I think there's an Italian restaurant nearby." He countered.

"Mind if I tag along?" Logan closed the door behind him as they walked out. The feint whooshing noise of the air-tight-sealed lock proved the security systems were working.

"Be my guest."

"So what's her name?" Logan couldn't help asking.

"I'll kill you."

* * *

R&R!


	6. Weeping Willow

Chapter Six

_Weeping Willow_

_

* * *

_

"Goin' somewhere hun?" Her dad asked as he passed by her room.

Kerry adjusted her leggings before she slipped on a pair of metallic ballerina flats.

"Yeah, I'm just going out with the girls," She wrapped a scarf around her neck and tucked it into her coat.

"No boys right?" Her dad teased.

Kerry froze, "No!?" Did he know?

"Geez, calm down sweetie," He smiled. Every time Stephen Nowicki smiled, the corners of his eyes wrinkled. He was a pleasant looking man and anyone who saw Ian thought he was a spinning image of Stephen when he was a child.

"Unless…there's something you want to tell me?" He quirked an eyebrow.

"Dad, there's no one I like right now," Kerry tried to sound as calm as possible, "Besides, guys are all rude arrogant pigs."

Mr. Nowicki raised an eyebrow.

"Except you dad." Kerry laughed nervously, "Love ya dad."

She made a move to walk past him but he blocked the door with an arm.

Kerry stared at him confused.

"Yeah dad?"

"Listen Ker," Her dad leaned against the door. "You and Ian mean the world to me, and I know you don't like Joanne-"

"-No dad! I don't mind her at all! I think she's great for the family." Kerry interrupted.

"Listen to me first. You think she's great for me and Ian," He stopped her, "But not you…"

He continued, "I love you and when your mother left, you were left with a lot of burdens that a teenage girl should never have to worry about."

"I don't understand where this is going…" Kerry said.

"Just try to get to know Joanne," He confessed, "She's important to me, but I want you to be happy with her too. She really likes you, ya know?"

_Yeah right._

"Oh dad," Kerry kissed his cheek, "Don't worry, I like her too but I've just been so busy and stressed with college stuff that I've been trying to relax with friends. I promise I'll try to be home more often and spend time with the family."

Her dad sighed in huge relief. "Thank goodness, I thought you went out to avoid her. But now that I know…" He patted her head like a child, "Take as much time as you need to relax, you've worked so hard all these years."

"I will dad." Kerry was about to leave again when her dad said one more thing.

"And you're a grown woman now Ker," He seemed a little uneasy, "You should really think about finding a guy. I never see you go on dates and I trust you to do nothing bad. I just think finding a boyfriend might be a good idea. If…there's a guy you like, why don't you bring him over for dinner?"

"There really is no one I'm interested in at the moment. I'd rather focus on more important things." Kerry said dryly...she thought about something, "Did Joanne tell you to say this?"

"Phew!" Her dad laughed nervously, "I don't understand teenage girls so I figured she'd know more. Thank god you feel that way because I don't want you dating until you're 50! And even then I don't think I'd fine a guy who's good enough for you! I'd probably strangle any boy that tried to cross our front door."

"Thanks…." Kerry laughed, "Love ya dad."

"Love you too sweetheart." He left the room obviously in a hurry to leave the awkward situation he just created.

Kerry went to the bathroom to fix her hair now that it was dry from her shower. She pulled it into various styles. A pony tail, pig tails, half-up, side pony-tail…

After pulling her hair out of a French braid, she decided to keep it down. As she was brushing the slight waviness out, she heard her father say goodbye as he left for work.

Checking the wall clock in the hallway outside she realized it was almost 10. Leon didn't really give her an exact time so she went to her room to browse the internet on her laptop.

She left a comment on Mei's page on a networking site.

"_I miss you. Call me soon!"_

Her cell phone rang a few minutes after she sent it. She didn't recognize the number but she answered regardless.

"Hello?"

"Hey Kerry."

It was Mei.

"Dude! Why didn't you answer any of my calls?!" Kerry was so happy to be talking to her best friend again.

"I'm at my cousin's house. I left my cell at home." Mei said simply.

"Oh, I gotcha." Kerry responded, "So how are you? You doing okay? How long were you at your cousin's house?"

"Well I pretty much left two days after that…thing…happened, but for the most part I'm doing good. I had no idea my mom planned to take me here...sorry if you thought I was ignoring you."

"No don't worry 'bout it girl," Kerry smiled, "To be honest I thought you were mad at me. And you had every right to."

"Nah, it's not your fault," Mei laughed through the phone, "I would've gone with anyone as long as they bought me drinks. Hah!" She continued, "So what are you up to?"

"I'm about to go out with Leon…a guy." Kerry forgot Mei didn't know who he was.

"Leon?" Mei sounded shocked.

"Yeah, he's a guy I met at the club last week," Kerry said, "I was dancing with him."

"Yeah I know," Mei said, "The guy who had the gash on his face."

"You sound like you know him?" Kerry was startled.

"Well he did save me after all." Mei said quietly.

Kerry dropped her phone. Did Mei remember everything that happened that night? Did she know?

"_Hello? Kerry? You there?"_

Kerry quickly picked up her phone.

"Do you remember everything that happened that night?" Kerry asked slowly.

"Well it's hard to forget having your finger carved…but no not really." Mei admitted, "I just remember you saying his name and I recognized the clothes he was wearing from back at the club. Other than that, everything's foggy."

Kerry's felt her heart slow down. _Thank god…she still didn't know._

"That guy must've had rabies or something, I can't believe he bit me." Mei continued, "And why was Leon there?"

"He was with us the entire time…he carried you to the car." Kerry said without quivering from the lie. She was getting used to lying, she felt terrible.

"Oh, that was nice of him." Mei said offhandedly. "Mind telling me why you didn't take me to the hospital? Douche."

"Leon's studying medicine in school and he said you could bleed out the toxins." Kerry quickly said, "So we didn't really need to take you."

"Medical school or not, how could you take advice from a guy who walks around with a gash on his face?" Mei asked sarcastically.

"You were drunk, it wasn't that bad. It was really a small scratch."

"Yeah oookay." Mei wasn't buying anything Kerry was saying. "You're such a bad liar."

"At least I tried."

Luckily, Mei dropped the subject not wanting to think too much about what happened to her.

"Well, any man who saves me from some STD or disease, is good enough for me….I approve!"

"Thanks." Kerry mumbled.

"Not even a scratch on me. Literally, I swore it was gonna leave a scar."

"Don't complain you ingrate! That's great news!"

"I am grateful and I'm not complaining!"

They both laughed at the silliness of their argument.

The conversation was ended by the doorbell.

"Hey I think he's here. I'll talk to you later."

"Alright Ker, see ya." Mei hung up the phone.

Kerry placed her cell phone in her coat pocket and patted the other side to make sure her wallet was there.

Taking a deep breath she descended the stairs and opened the front door. She was surprised by what she saw.

Kerry always saw Leon in the dark, but in the daylight he was a whole different picture. She envied his bronze skin. The natural highlights of his hair shined from the reflection of the sun. She was able to see his face more clearly, and although he still had a boyish charm, he had a strong angular chin. As he smiled she could see the stubborn dimples in his cheeks. The most captivating part of him was the way his eyes were pools of different warm colors. Kerry was also able to appreciate the definitions of his body better in the sunlight.

"You look great babe." Leon put his hands in his jean pockets and gave her a dazzling half smile that made him look shy in an adorable way. In the moonlight he looked arrogant and untamed, but during the day, he was the gentle Leon she got to see last night.

"You too." Kerry smiled.

She locked the door behind her before she went down the front steps. Joanne was out shopping and Ian was at school.

"Ever been on a bike before?" Leon asked as they walked side-by-side.

"Yeah, I used to ride my bike to school all the time." Kerry responded.

When she saw his black motorcycle in her drive-way, she choked, "Oh! That kind of bike…um….yeah I was just kidding, I've never been on a bike before."

Her uneasiness must have been noticeable because Leon laughed and hugged her from behind.

"I won't let anything happen to you, remember that." He said lowly in her ear.

Kerry shivered from his warm breath so close to her neck. He let go and walked ahead.

He tossed a helmet at her. She was surprised that she was able to catch it with her clumsiness.

She stared at him with confusion.

"What?" He asked.

"There's only one…" She indicated towards the helmet.

Leon laughed heartily. He shook his head in amazement.

"Oh Kerry, when will you ever learn." He grinned at her, "I can't seem to stop smiling when you're around."

"Geez…" Kerry rolled her eyes, "I'm glad you find me so funny."

"You _are_ funny," He ruffled her hair messing up the perfect side-part she created earlier, "But I'm not laughing _at _you-"

"I know I know," Kerry interrupted, "You're laughing _with_ me…yeah yeah."

"Actually, I was gonna say I'm laughing at the things you say and do…but sure." Leon said as he nodded his head towards his bike for her to get on.

"Wow. What a jerk." Kerry crossed her arms over her chest in defiance.

"Are you gonna stand there looking pretty all day, or are you gonna get on?" He joked.

"Pffft." But Kerry got on anyways.

"Hold on tight…no no don't hold on to my side, you'll fall off." He adjusted her arms to wrap around his waist until she was pressed against him, "There that's better."

"Is it necessary for me to be freakin' glued to you like this?" Kerry asked dryly.

"Of course. It's a matter of life or death." Leon said with a serious tone.

She was about to protest when he suddenly revved his engine and spun around nearly causing her to fall off.

"See?" Even though he had his back to her, Kerry knew he was grinning.

"You did that on purpose!" Kerry yelled.

"You should probably put on the helmet Ker."

"You're probably right." Kerry agreed.

Leon held the bike upright until she had fastened the helmet.

"Can you hear me?" Kerry said through the black visor.

"Loud and clear." He revved the engine again and Kerry grabbed him into a death grip. He smirked.

"I hate you!" Kerry cried.

"No you don't."

* * *

Kerry laughed at another joke Leon made towards her. She was beginning to get used to all the innuendos. He took her out to a casual restaurant for lunch and then they watched a movie. He insisted on watching one that was about werewolves called _New Moon_.

It was the biggest mistake they ever made because it was arguably the most cheesiest and corny depiction of the dangerous and sometimes vicious creatures that lycans and vampires truly were.

"At least they got the bloodsuckers right." He smirked as they walked out of the theater, "You better watch out Ker, they'll sparkle you to death with their blinged-out bodies."

"Shut up! You picked it!" Kerry laughed. She didn't even notice how easily she held his hand the entire day.

"You know what? I like it," He defended the movie, "Did you see how jacked-up the wolves were? That's DEFINITELY accurate." He winked at her.

"You're so modest." Kerry rolled her eyes.

"I try." He grinned.

"Where are we going now?" Kerry asked as they reached his bike in the parking lot.

"There's a place I want to take you but I was waiting for it to get dark." At that comment, Kerry gave him a weird look.

His mercy hands were up in a heartbeat, "I don't mean it in that way! God! Ker, you make me seem like some asshole who's trying to get in your pants!"

Kerry gave him another look and his eyes widened in disbelief.

"Jesus! Ker, give me more credit! You're worth way more than those random one-night-stand girls!"

He must've realized he was digging himself into a deeper hole with every word he said because he shut up.

"Just trust me alright?" He sighed, "Geez, you try to be a gentlemen, and this is what I get?" He muttered quietly.

Kerry couldn't help but smile at his antics.

She could have sworn they were on the road for at least an hour. With every passing second, the road became progressively bumpier and less established to a point it was just a dirt path. He stopped at a dead end.

"Wow, this is some spot ya got here." Kerry mocked him.

"This is where I'll have my way with you." He said suggestively.

Kerry gasped in shock.

"OH MY GOD KERRY!" Leon yelled, "You can't really be taking me seriously!"

"What am I supposed to think?!" Kerry tried not to laugh, "You tell me you have to wait until it's dark and then you bring me to the middle-of-nowhere 500 miles from civilization!"

Leon kicked his bike stand angrily and shoved his hands in his pockets.

"God damnit Ker," He grumbled, "I wanted to show you something, but we're gonna have to walk a little."

"Fine." Kerry responded. She didn't think it was a good idea to follow a guy deep into the woods, but if he really wanted to do something he could've done it any time earlier. He was, after all, a supernatural creature with unlimited strength and she was just an average girl. She trusted him.

"Maybe then you'll believe me." He grumbled some more as he stalked into the woods.

"Oh grow up," Kerry teased, "You're such a baby."

He didn't respond. _The silent treatment._

They walked for a few minutes through extremely thick bushes and plants until they came across another clearing. If it wasn't for Leon, she probably would've never made it.

Kerry was astonished by what was in the center of the clearing.

A small, willow-like tree was planted by itself in the middle of a garden of pebbles and gravel. Except, the astonishment came from the pale white glow it was emitting. It had white flowers with petals that fell every now and then. They made it seem like the tree was crying. As she approached it, she estimated it to be about three feet tall in comparison to her own height.

She went to touch one of the flowers but it froze as her hand came closer. In a second, it crystallized until it was see-through like glass, or crystal.

"Woah!" Kerry turned around to face Leon, but he seemed even more shocked than she was.

"…H-how did you do that?" Leon stuttered. He was staring at the crystal flower she was now holding in her hand.

"I don't know…" Kerry whispered, "You're the one that brought me here."

"It's never done _that_ before." Leon slowly walked towards her and took the crystal out of her hand. He raised it to the moonlight and turned it at different angles, inspecting every inch of it.

"Why did you bring me here?" Kerry whispered.

"To be honest…" Leon was still examining the flower, "I don't know. I just wanted you to see it."

Kerry couldn't deny that she was glad he brought her here. She felt extremely calm, she never wanted to leave. There was a compelling force that was drawing her to the tree like gravity.

"How did you find this?" Kerry asked, she tilted her head to the side, gazing at the weeping branches. She reached for another flower and, like the previous one, it turned to crystal into her hands.

"I..I…I just found it." Leon said nervously.

"Liar." Kerry couldn't take her eyes off the crystallized flower in her hand. "You try."

Leon understood what she meant because he reached for a flower and in his hands it turned to white dust. Taking out a small pouch from his pocket, he bent down to pour the fallen dust into the bag.

"What are you doing?" Kerry gave him a puzzled look.

"Souvenir." He replied lamely.

They both heard a distant howl. Leon's body tensed and he quickly got back to his feet.

"We need to leave. _Now_." He growled.

He grabbed her hand and dragged her back in the direction they came from.

"Wait!" Kerry cried, "You're hurting me!"

Kerry turned her head to catch a final glimpse of the clearing and her tree. She felt sad as it became no longer visible.

They made it to Leon's bike in one third the time it took to get to the clearing.

He shoved the helmet in her arms and he swung a leg over the bike. She quickly followed suit, sensing his urgency.

Once she wrapped her arms around his waist he sped off.

* * *

When they reached her house, Leon said he had to leave to take care of some business. Just like the first time he left when they met at the club. He kissed her cheek goodbye and left.

Now in her room, Kerry took out the flower she tucked away in her pocket.

It was absolutely beautiful, although it was more breath-taking under the moonlight.

She went through a drawer in her desk and found an old necklace she never wore. It was a thin silver chain with a heart pendant. She removed the pendant and pulled the chain through a small hole in the flower. She figured that was probably where a bug had bitten through. Clasping the necklace around her neck, she made sure it was securely hooked.

She turned in the mirror to admire how the crystal shined and sparkled in the light.

Kerry took off the necklace as she readied herself for bed, but as soon as it was off, she felt an anxiety that made her feel vulnerable and hollow. When she put the necklace back on, her warm feelings of security returned.

There was definitely something strange going on but Kerry was too enraptured with the crystal to question it.

After brushing her teeth and washing her face, Kerry slipped underneath her covers and reached towards her nightstand to turn off the light.

Her cell phone interrupted her from sleeping and she answered without opening her eyes.

It was her father telling her that Joanne, Ian, and him went out to dinner and were caught in traffic.

"Yeah dad, I locked up and everything…..alright….drive safe…….Love you too." She ended the call and opened her eyes to place the phone back on her night stand.

Her phone fell to the floor as a cold hand muffled her scream.

* * *

Please review so I have a reason to continue writing this! Once again, much love to my awesome beta reader AiDeeKay!


	7. Terror In the Night

**Chapter Seven**

_Terror In the Night_

* * *

A cold hand muffled her scream.

Kerry was face-to-face with a man who looked more frightened of her than she was of him.  
Trying to break from his gasp, Kerry tried to kick him until he was forced to reveal his long fangs that were blackened with decay. She shrunk away immediately.

She knew he was a vampire…even though he went against everything that was typically expected from his attractive kind.

"Don't try my patience you wench!" He warned. His hands began to tremble when he saw her exposed neck.

"Here, let me handle her," Another person said from behind. "The last thing we need is for you to kill her off."

"I can handle it!" Her captor snapped.

"Shut up Matthius before I rip your fuckin' fangs out!" The second man shoved himself between Kerry and the vampire. "Get the car started."

Matthius scowled but left the bedroom.

By his warm hands Kerry knew this second man was no vampire. She found an opportunity while his back was turned to her. She grabbed an alarm clock and smashed it into the back of his head hoping to buy time for escape.

He didn't even flinch.

Instead, with cold laughter, he struck her across the face causing her to fall back. When she tried to get back up she felt a little sting in her thigh.

He had injected her with something.

Kerry started feel numbness overtake her body as he flung her effortlessly over his shoulder. The man took her downstairs and out the front door. Kerry prayed that one of her neighbors would see and help, but no one came. All the houses on the street were dark. Kerry struggled to clear her dimming vision until all she saw was pitch darkness

* * *

She fell in and out of consciousness several times that night, her body was completely paralyzed. All she could hear were the voices of her kidnappers. Kerry remembered being shoved in the back of a small car but she didn't know how long they were on the road. She saw an occasional street lamp from her angle but she couldn't move to look at the window.

Were they even in Brockport anymore?

Why couldn't her life be normal for once? Why did everything have to happen to her? First the whole Ethan Bryne mess, then werewolves, and now this? Kerry tried to stop herself from crying, it would not help her in this situation.

"I swear if it's the wrong girl I'll rip your throat out myself." The driver said.

"How would it be my fault?! It's that damn old witch who sent us here anyway!" It was the vampire speaking this time. "Besides…if it's not her, we could always just drink her…."

"That's disgusting."

"Don't act all high and mighty when you've killed multiple humans before." Matthius sneered.

"I don't drink from them like a fuckin' bottle of wine."

"Whatever…there's no point in taking her back. She's going to die either way. I just don't want to waste perfectly good blood." He shrugged.

"Watch your mouth leech," The other warned, "If this girl is the real deal, she could kill us both."

Kerry was going to die. Her dad would never know what happened to her. She would never see her friends again…never go to college. Her life would end before she could legally drink.

"WHAT THE-?!" Matthius cried.

Before Kerry knew what was going on, she was flung forward onto the car floor. She felt the car whirl around uncontrollably until it came to a sudden halt.

She heard her kidnappers scramble out of the car muttering a line of profanity.

"Where the fuck are you?!" The driver shouted. "We know you're out there!"

"Who was that?" Matthius asked.

"How the hell should I know!" The other yelled.

Kerry heard their footsteps fade as they chased after the perpetrator of the accident.

But as theirs disappeared, another's approached.

The back door swung opened.

Kerry tilted her head up to see if it was one of her kidnappers.

"Shhh!" A man she didn't recognize pressed a finger to his lips. Looking around to make sure no one else was around, he whispered, "My name is Logan. I'm here to help you, but you have to cooperate."

He knelt into the car to pick her up with cold hands. _Another vampire._

The entire time Kerry eyed him suspiciously, she couldn't trust anyone in this crazy world.

He laughed, "I know you don't believe I'm saving you, but you really don't have a choice do you?"

He was right.

"PLEASE! NO!" They heard a cry from a dark building.

"Let's go see what's going on." Logan grinned.

"What?! No! Why would you go towards them?!!!" Kerry complained.

He raised an eyebrow. "So you _can_ talk? For a second I thought you were a mute."

"Please! Don't take me back to them!" Kerry pleaded. This vampire…he seemed more reasonable than the other two. He was definitely better looking but that was beside the point.

"Don't worry. They won't be able to lay another hand on you after tonight." He laughed.

"Huh?" Kerry gaped at him.

Without answering her, Logan carried Kerry towards the direction of the sound. Kerry realized they were on an empty street that was lined with broken, and most likely, abandoned warehouses and buildings. When Logan leaped threw a shattered window the desperate pleads of Matthius led them to an upper floor.

"Please! I didn't do anything! It was all Kent!"

"Shut up Matthius!" Kent barked.

"You're both going to die tonight either way." A voice said.

Kerry saw who the last speaker was when Logan turned the corner into a large torn down room.

"Michel!" She cried.

Her fallen angel turned his face towards her and smirked. "Hello Kerry. Logan you're an idiot for bringing her here."

"Like hell I'd miss this!" Logan scoffed, "I brought her along for the show."

Michel's smile disappeared when he saw the dark bruise on her right cheek where Kent struck her.

Rage overtook him and in lightning speed he slammed Matthius against a rusty file cabinet, denting the metal even more.

"Did YOU do that to her?!" His claws tightened their grip around his victim's neck.

When the answer didn't come quick enough, Michel broke Matthius's thigh bone with his free hand until it hung limply. Matthius let out a gurgled cry.

Looking at what Michel was talking about, Matthius then raised a shaking finger towards Kent.

"H-h-him…"

Michel dropped him onto the floor. Matthius let out a piercing scream when he landed on his broken leg but Michel didn't seem to notice and turned around to face the other man.

"By the time I'm done with you, you'll be begging for death." He growled.

"Uh-oh…" Logan said quietly, "If you're squeamish, now's the time to close your eyes."

Kerry could hardly see what was going on. Half of the room was open to the cold night as if a bulldozer came through but didn't finish the job. The only source of light was the moon.

When Michel took a step forward, Kent began to laugh.

"You're a fool." He looked at Michel with pure hatred.

"Oh? Please enlighten me." Michel grinned. _He wasn't taking the situation seriously!_

Kent started laughing again, this time it was maniacal. His laughter soon turned into agonizing screams.

Logan took a step back and held Kerry close protectively.

Kent was beating his head with his own fists brutally. His saliva poured out of his heavily panting mouth. He fell to his knees as he continued his self-inflicted injuries.

"Is he crazy?!" Kerry wondered out loud, "He's trying to kill himself!"

"That would be awfully nice of him," Logan said bitterly, "Don't waste your pity, you'll see him for what he really is soon enough."

Kent's body began to shake. Kerry screamed when she saw his bones lurch out as if they were snapping inside his flesh. His fingers twisted into disgusting angles.

Kerry wished she could cover her ears to shield them from the painful crunching sounds of his skeleton shifting. She closed her eyes to block out the image.

When she opened them seconds later, he had completely transformed into a monster. Kent's skin was partially covered in thick dark fur, his face retained few of his humanistic features, and his fingers were now lengthened with sharp black claws. Although he was standing upright, he was hunched like a raptor. His ears were pointed and covered in fur as well. In the moonlight his yellow eyes glowed ferociously.

Kent was a werewolf!

The creature let out a frightening howl and then lunged at Michel.

"Michel!" Kerry cried.

But her vampire easily dodged the attack. However Kent did not stop, he ran straight for Matthius, who sat on the ground helplessly.

"NOOOOO!" The vampire threw up his arms to protect himself in vain.

Kent ripped his arm off like a ragdoll, and then bit into Matthius's neck. Blood poured down his dirty shirt and the vampire's scream was cut-off when the werewolf viciously tore his head from his neck. Matthius's head dangled from its flesh by Kent's sharp, canine-like teeth.

Kerry screamed in horror.

Kent's ears twitched at the noise. He tossed Matthius's body aside and pounced in Kerry's direction.

Two things happened at once.

Logan turned around to take the brunt of the impact, and at the same time Michel intercepted the lycan by tackling him from the side.

Because of Logan's position, Kerry had no idea what was going on. She heard noises of struggle, but she didn't know who was winning. She heard a yelp and then a vicious snarl and then the rustling stopped. Her heart sank fearing for the worst.

When Logan turned around, Kerry saw Michel run towards her to block her view but it was too late.

"Logan don't!" He warned.

Kerry saw Kent…or what was left of him. His jaw made a bloody trail five feet from his body and his chest had a gory gaping hole.

Kerry fainted.

* * *

Kerry rolled over on her soft bed, body stiff and sore. She opened her eyes and it was still night time. She cuddled back into the silk sheets and the man next to her.

_Wait…man?! Silk sheets?_

Kerry shot upright and took in the foreign surrounding. She was in some kind of gothic nightmare. There was a dim lamp in the corner next to an ancient book shelf, it was the only source of light in the overwhelming darkness. She could hardly make out the shapes of the room and her own imagination warped chairs and tables into ghouls and goblins. This was definitely not her room.

When she turned around to see who the man was, she realized it was Michel.

_Was this crypt, HIS room?_

For a second Kerry was worried all her fussing had woken him, but he didn't budge. He laid there like a tragically beautiful statue.

_Did they sleep together? _

Kerry's face flushed red but she was relieved to discover her clothes were still on.

She contemplated opened the thick layers of black curtains to see what time of day it was, but she realized if Michel was still asleep, it was probably still daytime. He had this perfect internal clock in him and Kerry knew as soon as the sun set he would rise...not a moment before, not a moment later. She was also certain Michel wouldn't appreciate a rude awakening by a little sunshine.

Slowly slipping out of the humongous bed, she wandered around the vast room. When she went to pull out one of the books, she was surprised that it was completely void of dust. The _entire _room was spiffy clean.

In the corner of her eye, a painting attracted her attention. It was a beautiful portrait of a woman who looked like royalty. Her neck was covered in jewels and her hair was fashionably piled on top with a crown that sat in the center of her white curls. Judging by her dress, Kerry knew this woman was from a time period a few hundred years ago.

Unfortunately, this marvelous painting was defaced by a long tear that started near her collar bone that seemed to be made with a knife. At the bottom of the tear Kerry spotted elegant script.

'_Marie Antoinette.'_

"No way…." Kerry thought aloud. There was no way this could be an actual real portrait done of Marie. It must've cost an unimaginable amount of money!

Except…staring at Michel, Kerry began to think it was probably a souvenir from when he was younger. How _old_ was he?

…_Did they have a fling together?_

Kerry shook the thought out of her head. It shouldn't matter to her what Michel did back then or now, her grandparents weren't even alive at that time.

Suddenly feeling bitter, Kerry returned to the bed.

"Hmph," She stared at the sleeping vampire. "So what if you and Marie had something. Not like it matters to me. She can have you for all I care. You're mean, you lie, and you're so cocky. You treat me like I'm a kid! I hate you Michel…Whatever-your-last-name-is!" She said with her nose pointed up.

'_You're also ridiculously hot.'_ Kerry groaned. Who was she kidding?

Kerry leaned in closer to get a better look at him. She removed a stray hair from his face as she nervously touched his cold skin. Everything about him screamed perfection, he was out of her league. Yet here in a deep slumber, he looked so innocent. He seemed at ease with his hands lazily resting on his stomach. He was the 18, 19, 20-year-old boy…or man that he fooled everyone into believing. He was the Ethan Bryne that stole her heart three years ago.

She smiled.

Her finger had gone from his eyelids to tracing his lips. He was still asleep and it'd probably be a while until he was awake.

_Just for a second_…he wouldn't find out Kerry thought.

Her heart pounded in her chest as she lowered her lips to his. She was just a few inches from the man who haunted her dreams.

Kerry closed her eyes.

"I thought you hated me."

Kerry opened her eyes to see Michel smirking below her.

"GAH!" She flung herself backwards and almost fell off the bed entirely.

Michel's grin widened as he put his arms behind his head, looking a lot like Leon the night he was in her bedroom.

"Like I said," He crossed his leg over the other, "Haven't changed at all."

"What?!" Kerry cried, "I-I-I didn't do anything! I don't know what you're talking about! How long were you awake for?!!" She crossed her arms over her chest and turned away from him.

'_You're such an idiot!' _She thought to herself._ 'This is sooo embarrassing!!!'_

"I've been awake for the past…let me see…hour?" He laughed.

"Wha-?!" Kerry found herself pinned below Michel. He had both her arms held above her head with his hands. She was trapped.

He hovered above her body, slowly lowering himself until he was at the same distance she was earlier.

"You didn't have to stop you know…" He said lowly to her ear.

"I d-dunno what you're t-talking about…" Kerry struggled to keep her words coherent.

The tip of his tongue was like ice against her skin as he made a path along the side of her jaw.

"I think you do." He smiled slyly when she shivered.

"I…I…." Kerry couldn't find words.

Michel chuckled and kissed her softly on the forehead. In a blink of an eye he was on the other side of the room. He opened a closet and took out a white shirt, a green plaid button-up, and a pair of jeans.

He began to take off his tie. "I guess I was just imagining things."

"What are you doing?!" Kerry blushed. _He was going to change in front of her!_

"Oh! My bad." He feigned embarrassment. Michel flicked on the lights of the closet and shut the door behind him. He came out fully changed a minute later. He could've passed as a high-schooler in those clothes.

Michel grinned at her skeptical look.

"We're going out." Michel said bluntly. He went inside his walk-in closet and never came out. Kerry followed him when she heard running water.

There was another door at the other end which led to a bathroom. Kerry wondered what other hidden doors were in this bedroom.

"Where?" She asked.

Michel was trimming his hair with a pair of scissors. It was amazing how all the pieces of hair managed to land in the waste basket in front of him without straying.

"You're house." He replied.

"What?!" Kerry's mouth dropped, "Wait wait wait…"

He tilted his head a little to listen to her.

"You're not seriously going to just drop me off like all this never happened!" Kerry cried, "I want...no…DESERVE some answers at least! Who were those guys? Where are we? Is this your new house?"

"I saved your life. Can't you thank me and leave it at that?" He roughly threw the scissors aside and then leaned against the sink counter to scowl at her.

"You did NOT just say that to me." She prodded his chest with an accusing finger, "Last time I recall, I saved YOUR life and then you dragged me into a situation where some lunatic kidnapped my family and then tried to kill us both! Not to mention I saved your ass again by hauling you into that closet!"

He pushed her hand away and cornered her against the wall.

"That seems about right Kerry. You forgot to mention that you had no chance of escaping the laundry mat without me anyway. Also, I never asked for your help in any case, I told you to shoot me and you didn't. Not to mention you were the one who handed Marsala the gun in the first place. And finally," He pressed his sharp fangs to her neck, not yet piercing the flesh, "You keep forgetting what I am…I _feed_ off your kind. I don't have to play these human games. Your life was supposed to be over once you knew, therefore I owe you nothing. "

Kerry made a sharp intake of breath when he applied more pressure against her neck.

"Then why did you let me go…?" She whispered.

"Because I find_ your_ games particularly entertaining." He grinned.

He went back to cutting his hair without another word and Kerry left to the bedroom not wanting to be in his infuriating presence any longer.

'_He acts like I'm some kind of sport or toy that he can mess around with until he's bored.' _Kerry fumed._ 'He doesn't care about anything but himself!'_

She went to open a door when it opened from the other side.

"Woah there! I see you're awake!" It was Logan, "Hope I didn't interrupt something." He winked mischievously.

'_Pervert.' _

Kerry tried to walk around him but he grabbed her arm.

"I wouldn't go out there if I were you. Never know who's hungry in this house." He warned, "So…where's our friend Michel?"

"I'm right here." Michel said as he walked out of the closet.

"I knew you'd come out of the closet for me." Logan joked. Michel glared at him.

Kerry couldn't help laugh at their interaction. She wasn't sure if they were really friends or not.

Logan looked Michel up and down. "You look like an unruly hooligan."

"I try." Michel responded dryly, "I gotta take Kerry home."

"You're not going to keep a girl out overnight, and then meet her parents looking like _that_, are you?" Logan said with feigned shock, "Kerry! What would they think?!"

"It's not like I'm going to let this _asshole _come anywhere near my dad, let alone my front door." She muttered.

"Now that's something I'd pay to see, Michel versus Girlfriend's Father." Logan daydreamed, "I'd place my bet on dad."

The reference of Kerry being Michel's girlfriend made her feel uncomfortable. It would never happen. She unconsciously grabbed her necklace that was tucked under her pajama shirt.

Logan's smile faded when both vampires saw the crystallized flower.

"Where did you get that?" Michel snapped. He tried to grab her necklace but she turned away protectively.

"It's a long story, besides you'd never believe me." Kerry realized how stupid those words sounded when said to vampires.

"Humor me." Michel said with a harsh smile.

"I don't know where to begin!" Kerry struggled. She was frustrated that they were acting so weird over a necklace.

"Would I be wrong to guess it ends with a tree that glows?" Logan said half-jokingly, although his face was severe.

"How did you…" Kerry gaped at him.

"_Merde_…" Michel said angrily. "Who gave it to you?!"

"No one gave it to me!" Kerry cried.

"Kerry!" Michel grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her, "Don't lie to me!"

Kerry angrily slapped his hands away. "I'm not! I don't know how it happened you insensitive jerk! All I did was touch the freakin' thing and it just changed! I don't understand it either, I don't know anything anymore!" She mentally punched herself when she felt burning tears blur her vision.

'_Don't cry now! Not in front of him!'_

She looked away to try to hide her weakness.

"Let's give the girl a moment." Logan said sympathetically. He meant to pull his friend out the door with him but Michel shook him off. Logan shrugged and closed the door.

Kerry's body trembled as she tried to stop herself from breaking down. Everything was falling apart, her indifferent wall collapsed and she couldn't contain all her problems, sadness, or fear any longer. She spent three years trying to forget everything but now it was all coming back tenfold.

She used the sleeve on her wrist to wipe the stray tear that fell.

"Kerry…" Michel said softly.

"Go away." She responded.

She felt his cold arms wrap around her.

"_Ma chérie_," He cooed as he rubbed her back soothingly trying to calm her.

"You don't have to try and be strong in front of me. Besides, I knew you were brave ever since you tried to cut my wrists in the process of helping me." He smiled.

Kerry choked out a giggle. She almost felt guilty for ruining his shirt but she loved being in his arms too much to pull away.

"And I know you've been through a lot up 'til now, and I can't promise it's going to get any better," He pulled her away a little so he could rest his head against hers. "But I'm not going to leave your side until you're safe."

He stared at her with his captivating blue eyes. "I also owe you an apology for freaking out, but that crystal is extremely important to us. And now so are you."

Kerry's heart sank at his last statement, but she expected as much. She knew there was something strange about that tree and she made the connection that she was somehow involved. There was no other reason for Michel to be around her, let alone protect her.

But no matter why he hung around her she didn't care. She still loved him.

He wiped away the last few tears that escaped her eyes with his thumbs.

"That's more like it." He mused.

"Thanks." Kerry said quietly. She was truly grateful for his gentleness when she knew he didn't have to.

"Anything for you _chérie."_ He stroked her hair.

"Doubt it." Kerry frowned.

"You're right." He grinned.

"You ruin perfectly good moments." She glared at him, but she couldn't help smile.

"And you ruin perfectly good shirts." He countered with a grimace but he eventually grinned too.

"But really though…thanks for everything." Kerry stayed in his arms for a few more seconds before finally letting go.

"I meant every word." He responded.

Kerry didn't know what he meant by _every word_ but she wasn't sure if she wanted to know his answer so she kept her mouth shut.

"I guess you have to change again…sorry…" Kerry said, feeling awkward.

"Yeah…I'm gonna change my shirt, but we're still going to your house to pick up some stuff." He said as he walked back towards his closet.

* * *

Please review! Much love to AiDeeKay! My kickass beta reader who keeps me in check!


	8. Hearts Collide

**Chapter Eight**

_Hearts Collide_

* * *

"WHAT?! What do you mean you don't know when you'll be back!!!" Her dad shouted.

Kerry twiddled her fingers as she sat through the lashing her father gave her. This was all Michel's fault. He was the one who made her say she was going on a trip for an uncertain amount of time. The only thing he told her for certain was that she had to leave for her family's sake. Kerry didn't even know where he was taking her other than that they were going somewhere far away from Brockport.

Still, she wished he gave her some information to work with. Anything would've been helpful in trying to convince her dad to let her leave.

"Dad… I'm practically an adult now and I'll be going to college next year." She pleaded. "With school-work and studying, I won't have a chance to do this for a long time…I want to enjoy life while I'm young."

"But Kerry that IS life! You're not supposed to enjoy it until you're 60 and retired! Before that you have to work, start a family, go through mid-life crisis-" He rambled.

"You don't mean that!" She gasped.

"Uh…sorry." He apologized, "Can't you wait until after college when you're out of the house? By then, you don't have to tell or ask me to do anything. I actually prefer not knowing what young women do for fun nowadays!"

"But Dad..." Kerry complained, "Come on! Why won't you trust me?!"

"Young lady! Just two days ago you said you wanted to focus on the important things in life…no boys or any of those shenanigans!" He threw his hands up in the air in disbelief, "But then I find out yesterday you're not even home! You left the front door unlocked! You don't call me or anything, and then you come home with some PUNK?"

He paced back and forth in the living room. "To top it all off you decide to greet me by saying you're going on some road trip?!"

"Dad! I already explained what happened!" She stood up indignantly, "And he's not a punk! He's just a friend who was kind enough to give me a ride home!"

"That better be all he did!" Her dad fumed.

"DAD!" Kerry yelled.

"Okay okay!" He sighed. "Look honey, I understand Mei had an emergency." He sat down next to her. "And I understand you guys are close enough friends that you wanted to be there for her…but I expected more from you Ker. You could've handled the situation more maturely and at_ least_ CALLED to tell me where you were."

The tired look in his eyes made Kerry feel terrible for causing him so much trouble. "You could've at least let me pick you up…I've never even seen that boy before!"

"Can you please drop the boy talk?" Kerry groaned, "I'm sorry I worried you and everything, but I was in a rush. It won't happen again." She said.

"…But as for this road trip…" She took a deep breath to prepare herself.

"I'm old enough to make my own decisions in life, and right now this is what I want to do. Whether you like it or now, I'm going on this trip and I hope you'll respect my choice." She blurted out almost too fast for him to catch.

Her father's face went from normal to beet red. Kerry winced.

"KERRY NOWICKI! I AM YOUR FATHER AND AS LONG AS YOU'RE UNDER MY ROOF YOU'LL DO WHAT I GOD DAMN TELL YOU TO DO!" His voice boomed. "YOU ARE _NOT_ GOING ON THAT TRI-"

"Honestly Stephen!" Joanne came downstairs holding Ian. "Ian and I are trying to watch a movie upstairs and we can hear you even with the door closed! Are you trying to tear the house down?!"

Kerry's dad muttered something lowly as he dragged both hands down his face to cool off.

"_No respect these days. God damn…kids."_ He continued lowly.

"Stephen! Stop cursing in front of the kids!" Joanne scolded him.

"Well according to Miss. _I-Can-Do-Whatever-I-Want_ here, she's an adult now!" He pointed an angry finger at Kerry, who was now shrinking into the sofa with misery.

"She IS an adult now, but that doesn't mean Ian is!" Joanne snapped, "And she's right ."

Kerry looked up from her knees to stare at her soon-to-be-step-mom with surprise.

"Kerry's already been through so much, and yelling at her isn't making things easier on any of us." Joanne started, "I think a road trip is a wonderful idea, I used to go on them all the time when I was a teenager."

"Everything was safer back then! No drugs, no alcohol, no sex." Stephen countered.

"We grew up in the 70's for Christ's sake! All of that practically started from that time!" She laughed. "Besides, Kerry has always been a good girl, you told me so! Let her enjoy her youth Steve."

Stephen looked uneasily at Joanne, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I don't know…Just because we trust Kerry doesn't mean that'll stop some crazy lunatic from trying to abduct her." He frowned.

Kerry laughed nervously when he said that.

"Please?" She begged, "We'll keep to the major roads and stay with people we know. All of my friends who graduated before me went to different colleges, so we'd have plenty of places to stay at. Campus security is also really tight meaning we'd be safe!"

"See?" Joanne smiled, "I'm already convinced."

"_You were convinced from the start."_ Stephen grumbled. He knew he was losing this fight.

"And who would be going on this so called trip?" He asked sardonically.

"The usual people I hang out with," Kerry replied offhandedly. "You know…Mei, Alex, Tori…the girls!"

"That boy wouldn't happen to be going as well would he?" Her dad glared at her.

"NO!" Kerry inwardly cursed herself for answering so quickly.

After a moment of silence that seemed like it lasted forever, he gave up with a sigh of defeat.

"Ugh…listen to me Kerry Nowicki." He was going to give her one of his long lectures again. "You call me every morning and every night. I don't care how late it is, if I'm sleeping just leave a message. Don't accept rides from ANYONE, you hear? If the car breaks down, lock the doors and call 911, and then call me. Stay together and never wander off alone. Anytime you get into a different city, let me know where you are. If you girls can help it, avoid driving at night. Do NOT pick up hitch-hikers. Also-"

"Alright alright, she gets the picture Steve," Joanne laughed, "Everything you say she knows already."

"I'm just reminding her!" He snapped. "Just…be safe." He finished wearily.

"I will dad." Kerry stood up to go to her room and pack. She kissed her dad on the cheek before she went up the stairs.

"Ker wait!" Her dad called.

'_Great..what now?'_ She thought.

"Yeah?" She leaned over the railing to look down at him.

"When are you leaving for this trip?" He asked.

"Tonight."

"WHAT?!!!"

"Kerry why don't you go upstairs. You too Ian." Joanne urged the very confused child towards the stairs.

Kerry happily complied and ran to the safety of her room. She could hear the muffled arguments below. She was just happy it was all over and collapsed onto her bed.

"Took you long enough." A voice said.

"Why don't you go and meet my dad and _then_ come talk to me." Kerry growled.

She felt the bed shift with Michel's weight as he sat down with his legs hanging off the side.

"Your room is very…feminine…" He said plainly as he looked at her light pink walls and matching furniture. Then his nose wrinkled in disgust. "Was there a dog in here?!"

"Oh yeah, your favorite person dropped by for a visit!" Kerry said with a fake smile.

He rolled his eyes and leaned his elbows on his knees.

"Do you two meet in your bedroom often? Your sheets reek of his scent." He said scathingly.

Kerry scowled at him, but then she smirked. "Why do you care? Jealous?"

"Nothing compared to how you felt about me and Marie." He said slyly.

"You're such a jerk." She buried her face in her pillow not caring if he could understand her. "For your information, he only came by once and we didn't do anything."

At least…anything Michel was probably thinking.

Kerry felt an overwhelming sense of guilt when she thought about Leon's kiss. She quickly repressed it when she remembered that Michel practically admitted to having a relationship with Marie. She also didn't forget he was only with her because of the crystal and the tree, which she later found out, was called the Lunar Child. Even that little piece of information didn't come without a good amount of prying. She didn't know anything else.

"Well!" Michel rose from the bed. "You should start packing."

"Okay." Kerry rolled onto the ground ungracefully and pulled out a small tote bag from underneath.

"You're going to need something way bigger than that. I don't know how long we'll be gone." He grinned.

"It'd be helpful if I knew where we were going." She said bitterly. She looked in the back of her closet and found a decent sized suitcase.

"I'll be right back." She grabbed an outfit and took the tote bag to the bathroom. Kerry decided to take a quick shower before leaving. If Michel got upset about having to wait then oh well, serves him right. She also took the time to brush her teeth and dry her hair.

She pulled a light-blue sundress over her head and then slipped on a gray cardigan over it. After being fully clothed, she began to pack her tote bag with necessary hygiene products and her make-up, throwing in her hair-dryer just in case.

By the time Kerry returned, her suitcase was already filled with the majority of her wardrobe.

"Did you pack my clothes?" Kerry stared at Michel incredulously.

"You were taking forever, so I thought I might speed up the process." He shrugged as he threw in a couple pair of jeans. Taking in her appearance he complimented her. "You look good in that color."

"Thanks…" Kerry smiled. Her face contorted into horror when she realized he was going for the drawer with her undergarments.

"NO!" Kerry blocked his path. "Thanks…but I'll finish up. Go…do something. Fly. Shoo." She waved her hands dismissively as her faced burned with embarrassment.

He must've understood what was going on because he gave her the most arrogant look and then closed his eyes as he turned away from her.

When she was certain he couldn't see, Kerry struggled to pull the heavy suitcase close to the dresser. She didn't want to be caught traveling with a pair of her panties or bras in hand if he decided to peek.

When she finished burying the last articles of clothing beneath the rest, she sat on the top flap so she could zip her suitcase. It didn't help much because the zipper wouldn't budge past the bulging insides.

Kerry groaned. She was going to need another suitcase.

"Here let me get that." Michel gently pulled her off the suitcase and pressed down with a single hand. He closed her suitcase with ease.

Michel was about to pick up the baggage when Kerry stopped him.

"Wait! What would my dad think if I left with nothing?" She explained.

"Ah. You right." He grinned, seeming proud of her observation.

He put down her bags and walked towards the window. "I'll be around the corner. Please hurry." He paused, "You're friend's here already."

Kerry nodded and went to pick up the suitcase but ended up cracking her back in the process.

"OH-HO-HO-HO!" She laughed in pain. "Fight the pain….fight the pain!"

She glowered when she heard Michel burst into laughter. By the time she turned to say something insulting to him, he was already gone.

Kerry settled with dragging and then pushing her luggage to the bottom of the steps. Joanne and her dad stared at her with mild amusement. Slipping on a pair of flats she said, "Well…Mei's here so I'm leaving now."

"Have fun dear." Joanne beamed.

"Thank you, I will." Kerry flashed the woman a genuine smile in return. She was truly grateful for her support.

After pulling on her coat, she straightened her dress wondering if it'd be too cold to wear something so short.

"Steve, aren't you going to say something?" Joanne slapped his arm softly.

"Meh." He shrugged, still angry about earlier.

"Love you dad. I'll call you tomorrow." Kerry said sadly. She hated to leave on such bad terms.

She opened the front door and was about to drag her suitcase when her dad rose to his feet.

"Ker, you'll break your back doing that." He grumbled as he walked over to pick up both her bags. Kerry smiled as she followed him out the door. Even though his voice was serious and indifferent, Kerry knew he just cared too much.

Mei waved through the windshield when she saw Mr. Nowicki. He responded with a curt nod of acknowledgement but nothing more. When he walked past the driver's seat, Mei pointed a thumb towards him with a puzzled look.

'_Don't ask._' Kerry mouthed to her.

'_Gotcha.'_ Mei shook her head understanding.

After her bags were secured into the truck, Stephen walked up to his daughter.

"Remember everything I told you." He said sternly.

"I will." She said.

"Don't talk to strangers." He added.

"I won't." She replied.

"And if-"

"Dad…" Kerry reassured him, "I'll be fine. I promise." But deep down Kerry wasn't so sure about that. _Michel would be with me, I'll be okay._ Kerry told herself.

"Alright…have fun Ker. Don't forget to call." Stephen crushed his daughter into a bear hug. Kerry hugged her father back, feeling sad that she had to leave her family behind. But it was safer this way, for everyone.

When Kerry got inside the car, she spotted Ian in the window. He was waving goodbye to her.

She smiled at him and waved back and then blew a kiss, laughing when Ian kissed the window.

"That's just precious." Mei chimed as she backed out of the drive-way.

"I'm gonna miss him." Kerry agreed.

"You owe me big time." Her friend mumbled as she drove towards a black Mercedes parked near the corner.

"I know." Kerry laughed. "…Oh I'm gonna miss you too Mei!"

"There's so many things I wanna ask you, but I'm assuming you don't have time?" Mei said as they came closer to Michel's figure leaning against the car.

"Sadly no." Kerry frowned. She didn't mention that she probably wouldn't be able to answer those questions either.

"That's someone new." Mei said as she pulled the car into park, "What about Leon?" She turned to face Kerry.

"It's a long story." Kerry groaned. She reached over to hug her best friend. "I'll call you okay? Thanks so much, I love you. You're like the sister I never had."

"Geez Kerry," Mei swatted her affection away playfully, "You act like you're going away forever, or you're gonna die tomorrow…but I love you too and you better call me!"

"I will." Kerry left the car to close the trunk. Michel had already taken out her luggage and was in the process of putting it in his own trunk.

"Bye!" Mei called through the window.

Kerry waved goodbye and then walked towards Michel.

"Humans take forever to say goodbye." He frowned, "I could be on the other side of the planet in the time it took you to just leave your house."

Kerry merely stared blankly at him. She was starting to become immune to his insensitivity.

"Sorry I care about people and people care about me." She said sarcastically.

"I forgive you." He responded haughtily.

"Whatever, you're impossible." She sighed as she entered the passenger seat and Michel followed suit. Kerry didn't even have a chance to buckle her seat belt before he was already speeding down the road.

Vampire or no vampire, Kerry yelled at him to slow down. She even threatened to jump out several times to which Michel responded by saying he dared her to. After a while of nonstop fussing, she finally managed to get him to reduce his speed by a margin but still nowhere near the speed limit.

"Will you tell me where we're going?" Kerry asked for the hundredth time that night.

"Can't you just wait until we get there to find out?" He snapped. Michel drove with his right hand on the steering wheel. His head rested on the other that was leaned against the window sill.

'Good. He can have a taste of his own medicine.' Kerry thought smugly.

"You know. It'd be easier if you just told me now." Kerry suggested innocently.

"Maybe with any other girl, but not you." Michel said. "You're like a bottomless pit, one question just leads to another."

"Hmph." Kerry huffed. "I don't do that."

"Yes you do."

"Not uh! Name one time I've done that! You can't can you?" She said childishly.

"You did just now." Michel smirked.

Kerry choked incoherent utterances but decided to give him the silent treatment.

"Ah. Peace at last." Michel sighed in relief. He was trying to provoke her but Kerry wouldn't give into his game. She refused to give him satisfaction.

They drove in silence for an hour until Kerry fell asleep.

* * *

When Kerry woke up, she had her temple against the window and her neck was aching. She rubbed the numb area and groaned when she realized there was probably going to be a red mark. When she turned to face Michel, she was puzzled by his tense posture. He even had both hands on the steering wheel.

"Is something wrong?" Kerry asked hesitantly.

"Sleep well?" He asked lightly, but his severity didn't change. "We're being tailed."

"Huh? No way…" Kerry turned around to see who was behind them. She didn't see anything. In fact, she was almost certain that they were the only life forms on the road at this hour.

"No one's there…I don't see anyone." Kerry said with a puzzled look.

"I wouldn't expect you to." Michel flashed a quick smile towards her.

Unexpectedly, his attention snapped to the rear view mirror. A motorcycle light appeared from the trees and swerved onto the road behind them.

"Can you see him now?" Michel joked.

"Who is that?!" Kerry shouted. The blinding beam of the rider's headlight prevented Kerry from seeing the person.

"It's your little mutt." Michel growled.

"Mutt?....Leon?!" Kerry asked hysterically.

"Yes, I believe that's his name." Michel frowned. "Can't we go through one night without a single annoyance?"

Leon sped up to catch up to the car. He reached a point where he was driving alongside Kerry's spot. When she looked out the window he waved at her and then proceeded to give Michel the finger.

Michel smirked and took that moment of vulnerability to swerve the car into Leon.

"What are you doing?!" Kerry screamed. She twisted in her seat to see if Leon was okay. The werewolf barely managed to avoid impact, but the struggle gave Michel some distance between them.

When Michel heard Leon's bike roar as it accelerated, he stomped on the brakes. Kerry lurched forward with only the seatbelt to prevent her from hitting the dashboard. At the same time, Leon smashed into the back of the car and was sent flying past them until he came to a skidded stop.

"MICHEL!!!" Kerry yelled frantically.

"Don't worry, I'm sure it's just a dent." Michel grinned.

"I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT THE CAR! YOU MIGHT'VE KILLED HIM!" Kerry cried as she kicked the door open.

"Leon!" Kerry ran to the fallen man's side. "Oh Leon. Please be okay!" She looked at the bloody scrapes all over his body.

"Relax Kerry." Michel walked up behind her. "He'll be fine…unfortunately."

"You shut up!" Kerry snapped at him. She gasped when Leon's eyes opened.

The werewolf slowly staggered up. When Kerry tried to assist him, he held up a hand to stop her.

"Babe you alright?" Leon asked when he finally stood upright.

"How can you ask me that when you're the one who should be hurting?!" Kerry asked. She was extremely relieved that he seemed to be alright.

"She's right. You did get pretty fucked up." Michel sneered. "Should I call an ambulance in?"

"I'll tear your throat out you filthy bloodsucker." Leon barked viciously.

"I can't deny being a bloodsucker. But filthy? Me? No. I leave that to the stray dogs." Michel grinned.

"Say that to my face you bastard." Leon warned. "I'll whoop you even while I'm down."

"I strongly doubt that." Michel shoved his hands in his pockets. "If you don't mind, Kerry and I need to get going now but it was nice of you to _drop_ by." Michel's emphasis on the word made Leon growl.

"You're not taking Kerry anywhere!" Leon placed an arm in front of Kerry.

"Oh yeah? Who's gonna stop me?" Michel took a step forward.

"You're lookin' right at him." Leon advanced forward as well. "I'm here to protect her from freaks like you!"

"Freaks?!" Michel genuinely laughed, "That's funny coming from someone who turns into a sack of fur!"

"At least I can go out during the day without worrying about bursting into flames!"

"Ah yes, but it must be uncomfortable when your bones snap in half every time you see a little moonlight. Do you cough up hairballs too or is that just a cat thing?" By this time, the two bickering men were nose to nose with each other.

"STOP IT! BOTH OF YOU!" Kerry shoved herself between the two. She held them apart with her hands. "I've seen children with higher maturity levels! GROW UP!"

"But he-" Leon tried to blame Michel but Kerry stopped him.

"DON'T even!" Kerry snapped. They were being childish and equally provoked each other. Although...Michel_ did _go overboard with that trick he pulled in the car.

Michel merely shrugged and placed an arm around her waist. "We're late as it is. Let's go."

"I'm not letting you take her." Leon warned. "If you wanna leave by yourself then fine, I'll let you run off this time. But she stays."

Michel cracked his knuckles ready for a fight while Leon stretched his neck side-to-side. Kerry knew she had to do something quick before the situation escalated to something serious.

"Leon…" Kerry said softly as she laid a hand on his shoulder, "He's not forcing me to go...I'm leaving with him willingly." She felt a sharp pang in her chest when she saw the look he gave her. Was it hurt? Betrayal? Maybe even shock.

"I'll be safe, don't worry about me." She gently touched his cheek and turned away to get back into the car. Michel stared indifferently at the stunned wolf as he turned to get into the driver's seat. Before he could close the door shut, Leon's hand stopped it.

"At least tell me where you're going?" His eyes pleaded with Kerry. Michel growled at the lycan's audacity, he was beginning to become more than a pain in the ass.

"I don't know either..." Kerry responded pitifully. She turned to the man next to her. "Michel...I'm not going any further with you until you tell me." She said sternly.

Michel rolled his eyes feeling extremely irritated about the whole situation. It took everything in him to not kill the fool next to him, and then gag Kerry and throw her in the trunk. That sounded like a wonderful plan...but if he did that, she would hate him, and he couldn't let that happen for various reasons.

"_Paris_." He said flatly with a perfect accent.

"Where the fuck is Perry?" Leon frowned.

"You're such an idiot." Michel drove off without closing the door, leaving an open-mouthed werewolf behind.

"You're taking me to Paris?!" Kerry's eyes widened in disbelief as Michel shut his door. "You're kidding me!"

"Why? Would you rather go somewhere else?" Michel stared at her.

"No! No!" Kerry laughed, "I just…I can't believe I'm going to Paris!"

"Well I'm glad you're excited." He flashed her a heart-stopping grin. "Although I was hoping to surprise you."

"Why are we going there?" She asked excitedly.

Michel shook his head in wonder.

"Bottomless pit I tell ya." He winked.

"Sorry!" Kerry blurted. "I'll stop I promise!"

Kerry couldn't believe she was going to Paris! She had always wanted to go to Europe, especially France. There were so many hostels they could stay at for a decent price and they could cheaply hire a native for a private tour. She would finally be able to see the Eiffel Tower and all the other places she dreamed of visitng.

"You're awfully quiet now." Michel mused.

"Huh? Oh! I'm just in a really good mood." Kerry grinned. "And I can't stop thinking about how amazing it's going to be."

"Seeing how happy and silent you are now, I wish I told you earlier." Michel teased.

Kerry laughed vibrantly. This was definitely going to be way better than any road trip.

Speaking of road trips...Kerry had no idea how she was going to be able to contact her dad. International phone calls would rack up the bill in no time.

She groaned.

"What now?" Michel asked.

"I don't know how I'm going to call my dad every night and morning? He's going to notice I'm in a different country when he sees the phone bill! Ugh…that was one of his conditions!" Kerry panicked.

"We'll figure something out. Go back to sleep. I'll wake you up when we're at the airport." Michel reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly.

Kerry couldn't help trust him. She was feeling sleepy again but she didn't know if it was herself or Michel's doing. Regardless, driving in the car with him reminded her of the times they shared three years ago. Except it was better now because her family was safely at home and there wasn't a corpse lying in the back seat.

* * *

Please Review! Much love to **AiDeeKay,** and the readers who have been keeping up with my fic. =) Especially **Restless Dreaming Spirit, MythStar Black Dragon**, and **Angelkrow666**. You guys rock!


	9. Dreams

**This chapter is really short and cryptic. There's a reason for it lol. Bare with me.**

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

_Dreams_

* * *

"_Mama look!" A child ran through the garden clumsily as she plucked a small dandelion. Bringing it close to her face, she examined her specimen with wondrous eyes, twirling the cotton-like flower with her tiny fingers. But before she could touch it, she suddenly sneezed causing the feather-like petals to disperse and fly off with the wind. _

_The girl stared shockingly at the sad remains of the bare stem and burst into tears. She clutched the stem tightly, pouring with guilt over destroying the pretty flower. _

"_What's wrong?" A voice asked softly behind her. _

_When she turned around she saw a beautiful man standing next to her. His head was tilted to the side with his hands behind his back. _

_She held up the stem to him pathetically and cried, "My flower!" _

_The man chuckled, "That's not a flower, it's a weed." _

"_I dun care if it's a weed! It was pretty but I kilt it!" The child replied stubbornly as she continued crying. _

"_Really now?" The man raised an eyebrow at the girl, "That weed would have killed the other flowers around it by taking all of the water for itself." He said seriously. _

"_It's not its fault that it's thirsty!" The girl yelled angrily at the mean grown-up._

_After a few seconds of silence, the man threw his head back with laughter and shook his head with amazement. He crouched next to her and patted her head softly as he stared at her with intense brown eyes that seemingly flashed red. The girl gasped. With a gloved hand he plucked another dandelion from the ground and blew on it until all its seeds scattered. _

"_Hey!" The girl cried in horror. The man shushed her and pointed to the ground where some of the seeds landed. _

"_Look," The man smiled, "Those seeds will eventually become new dandelions." _

"_Dan-dee-lion…" The girl repeated quietly as she looked at the seeds. A grin began to grow on her face and she rose to her feet. She ran around the garden looking for the weed and began to gather them. When her tiny hands were full, she blew them all at once, giggling and sneezing at the same time._

"_What are you doing child?!" The man laughed as he tried to catch up to her. When he finally took a close look at her face, it was red from all her sneezing. Taking out a handkerchief, he wiped all remnants of her tears and dried her runny nose. _

"_I'm making more dandelions!" The girl chimed happily. Her eyes wandered around them to search for any that she had missed._

"_Oh no! But what will become of the other flowers?" He asked with mock despair. He held his arms out wide to gesture to the entire garden. "If you keep this up, this entire place will be filled to the top with weeds!" _

"_Dandy-lions are prettier so it's okay." The girl smiled. _

"_You are wretchedly shallow." The man stared at her with even more amazement but he was grinning. _

"_Not-uh!" The child pouted, "It's so lonely and everyone hates it and calls it a weed!" _

"_You're absolutely right, my apologies." The man bowed respectively. "Dandelions deserve a garden of their own for all their hardships and I shall help you milady." _

_The girl nodded approvingly as she continued her mission. _

_A sinister smile grew on the man's face as he twirled the crystalized flower pendant he had stolen from the girl's pocket. _

* * *

Kerry woke up covered in beads of sweat.

'_What the hell was that…'_

Slowly rational consciousness came back to her, and she distinctly remembered seeing the Eiffel Tower shining brilliantly in the night from the private jet's window. Everything after that was a blur.


	10. Lust

**WARNING: It gets a bit sexually explicit near the end of the chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

_Lust_

* * *

"Where the hell am I….Michel!" Kerry yelled frantically.

Her hands had minds of their own as she held herself like a scared child. She looked around at the small dark room. Tragically aware of how alone she was, Kerry frowned at windowless red walls. With no lights other than a few gloomy candles, her paranoid mind began to plague her by distorting the shadows into terrifying monsters.

The room was terribly cluttered with antiqued furniture, and the bed she was sitting on was too stiff, lacking any covers or pillows.

"MICHEL!"

A hidden door in the wall suddenly opened but it wasn't Michel on the other side.

Kerry gaped at the stunningly gorgeous blonde woman scowling at her.

"Can you shut up and stop whining?!" The woman snapped. "Michel's not here right now and I'm stuck babysitting you. The least you can do is sit quietly!"

"Who…who are you?" Kerry whispered pathetically.

"Not that I have to tell you anything…" The woman sneered, "My name is Cecilia, Michel's partner."

Seeing the look of confusion in Kerry's eyes made the vampire smirk. Without another word she turned away, allowing the door to close on its own.

'Partner?...What kind of partner?!'

Kerry felt an all-too-familiar feeling of jealousy creeping up on her. By now all her memories of the past few days were clear in her head, she was more angry than scared now. Michel told her he was taking her to Paris, but he didn't mention anything about being trapped in a creepy room with a bitch of a 'babysitter.'

Cruel vampire or not, he owed her a serious explanation.

Unexpectedly fatigue swept over her petite form. Kerry curled into a little ball on her side, bringing her knees to her chest as she thought about the recent events. For the first time, the insanity of everything suddenly hit her.

Vampires.

Werewolves.

Crystal trees.

Being in this gothic vintage room did no help to ease her anxiety. She felt tears threatening to form and she closed her eyes. Visions of her father, her friends, and Ian soothed her and simultaneously disheartened her mood for she missed them terribly.

Before she knew it, she was asleep again.

* * *

A furious growl escaped his lips after receiving the news from Logan.

It was almost the minute they arrived into Paris that Michel was summoned to meet with the Parisian coven leaders. For security reasons, he had induced Kerry into a deep slumber while they were still in the air. Although he knew there would be transportation waiting for him in the private terminal, he ordered Cecilia to take Kerry separately to one of his private properties in a more reclusive part of the city.

The following stream of profanity that followed, Michel wondered if he should have sent Logan instead. By the news he just received, he was right.

The meeting with the native coven took ages and as he was exchanging farewells with several leaders, Logan had notified him that Cecilia was treating Kerry with less than civil hospitality.

She would learn the hard way for inconveniencing him.

As he turned his heel to follow Logan to the exit, the oldest coven leader touched his arm.

"Michel." The vampire smiled.

He was a weak looking old man, everything about his appearance seemed fragile but the regal attire he was dressed in signified the hidden power behind this deceiving façade.

"Sire Gustave." Michel bowed respectfully, but his face remained stoic. "To what may I owe the pleasure of your company?"

The old man's brown eyes glimmered inexplicably with a brief flash of red.

"No need for such formalities," Gustave took Michel's hand and patted it affectionately. "Come walk with this old man."

Although he was eager to return to Kerry, Michel knew better than to defy this vampire. Gustave was one of the few original vampires along with Claudius. They were not changed, but were born into eternal darkness.

Never knowing humanity, such creatures were stronger than those that were sired. However, they aged physically with time unlike vampires like Michel, who was permanently confined to his age and appearance. Although he looked much older than Claudius, it was only because he did not possess the same royal bloodline as the Leader of the Damned.

"Word has traveled that the Lunar Children have awakened."

"There's more than one?" Michel stopped in his tracks stunned. He inwardly cursed his slip up.

"So it is true." Gustave chuckled. He let go of Michel's hand and continued pacing down the dark hallway.

"My apologies, I do not know about any awakening but only heard brief tales of the legend." Michel lied. All he knew was that Kerry was somehow related to the Lunar Child and keeping her existence unknown was the only guarantee to her safety.

Gustave's expression remained unreadable; Michel couldn't tell if the old vampire had seen through his lie.

"What a shame." He said curtly.

"But you mentioned children...I thought the legend only spoke of one Lunar Child." Michel couldn't stop his curiosity from speaking, he needed to know as much as possible about what he was dealing with.

Gustave merely chuckled, "There is only one Host, but there are numerous Lunar Children throughout the world. I'm sure you know of their healing properties, but without the interaction of the Host, they are all limited in their true powers."

"Is there a Lunar Child in Paris?"

Brown eyes suddenly flashed red again as Gustave's lips curled into a twisted smile.

"You're quite curious aren't you…there very well may be one," He stopped pacing, "But I wouldn't know anything about that."

Michel's body tensed as his blue eyes carefully watched the old vampire.

"O well," Gustave turned around and walked away as Michel stood where he was. "I was excited to think I may have finally been able to see the legend for myself…but I guess not. If you do hear anything, you'd tell me now wouldn't you?"

"Of course sire." Michel said dutifully. He bowed but never broke his line of sight of the retreating form. It was not until Gustave had turned a corner that Michel hurried out of the coven to where his human was waiting.

* * *

Kerry woke up to sounds of arguing outside the dark walls. She rubbed the sleep away from her eyes when she thought she heard Michel's distinct voice.

After hearing a cry of frustration from what seemed like Cecilia's voice, the hidden door opened again.

Before she could even react, Michel was already beside her and whisked her up effortlessly in his arms.

"I'm sorry." His voice was unnervingly solemn but his eyes seemed apologetic.

Without another word, he carried her out of the room and Kerry had to bury her face into Michel's shoulder to shield her from the bright fluorescent lights. As her eyes slowly adjusted to the new brightness, she caught a glimpse of that horrid room before the wall closed by itself.

She looked at her surrounding and realized she must have been in some kind of luxurious hotel or mansion. The walls were embellished with old oil paintings within golden frames. Small tables they passed by were topped with lavish vases, some with floral arrangements. It looked far more chic and upscale compared to the room she was in, it was almost impossible to believe that same room was a part of this elegant estate.

Michel had taken her to a new room. The walls her washed in light pastel lavender colors. The furnishings were made of spotless ivory with occasional golden lining. The large bed in the center of the room was overflowing with extravagant covers and silk pillows that matched the other light colors in the room. Although the heavy dark purple curtains were down, the room had the brightness of the sun by the brilliant chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

Kerry was already on her own feet but was twirling around, trying to take in the entire area that seemed too unnatural to belong to a vampire. It looked like the room of a rich Heiress.

She stopped when her eyes met with Michel's blue gems.

"Where were you…?" Kerry suddenly remembered that it was his fault she was so distressed earlier. The only times she had ever seen such darkness was because of him.

Michel frowned at the hurt and distrust he saw in the beautiful mortal in front of him.

"I had to attend to urgent matters." He said cryptically.

"So you thought it was okay to just leave me with that crazy bitch Cecilia?!" Kerry cried, "If this is going to happen more often then why did you even bother bringing me here?!"

It took a few seconds for Michel to respond and he seemed uncomfortable. It almost looked like he was trying to decide if he should tell her or not.

"You were never supposed to be in that room."

He gestured to the room they were standing in, "This was where you were supposed to stay. This is your room."

"What the hell is up with that other room anyways?! Is there more fucked up things in this house like it?!" Kerry yelled with hostility.

"That doesn't concern you!" Michel snarled dangerously. Kerry jumped back at his sudden outburst. "I already apologized, if you are going to keep challenging me then you can go back in there! I do not have to explain anything to you."

Kerry's brows furrowed as she looked dejectedly at the floor. Her messy bangs covering her eyes, "I'm sorry…don't be mad…it's just…everything is so overwhelming and…I can't help wish I never left home."

She looked up when she heard Michel sigh in defeat, "You have every right to feel the way you do. You just have to trust me."

It wasn't exactly reassuring, but it was a typical Michel answer.

Kerry smiled weakly at him, which caused Michel to quickly pick her up and throw her onto the bed. When she tried to get up he was already on top of her, much like the position the first time she woke up in his room.

She looked up at him with confused eyes, and then he smirked.

"I'm annoyed by how much you affect me." He said boldly, "Is it strange how bothered I am when I see you smiling with that filthy dog? Yet, when you're with me you show nothing but fear and sadness."

"That's not true!" Kerry said defensively, she felt sudden guilt when her mind wandered to Leon and everything that transpired between them. She was a terrible person, leading on these two men….creatures.

"See?" His cold finger traced the corners of the frown on her face. His finger continued trailing down her neck to her arm, then her sides…

Kerry suddenly burst into fits of giggles. The look of shock on Michel's face was priceless, it was like he was unfamiliar with the sounds coming from Kerry. While he pulled away, his finger brushed up against her side again and she fell into another fit of laughter.

Michel stared incredulously at the insane girl beneath him.

When Kerry finally calmed down, she puffed for air.

"I'm really ticklish." She announced sheepishly.

"Ticklish?" Michel said dumbly.

"Yeah!" She made a dazzling smile, "Don't you ever get ticklish sometimes? Like when someone touches your side or back and it feels so weird you laugh?"

"I know what ticklish is…my race is genetically wired to feel minimum sensitivity to physical contact, that's why we can endure far more pain that you humans." Michel explained, his face still puzzled.

Kerry enjoyed seeing Michel in such a vulnerable state, it was different…really adorable actually. She touched his cheek lightly with her hand.

"I guess that's one of the things being human has on being a vampire," Kerry said softly, "So you can't experience or enjoy small things like that?"

"Pshh," Michel smirked. He was suddenly back in character.

"I was human once and trust me when I say feeling tickles is something that I don't miss at all, and it certainly doesn't outweigh the perks of being the top predator in the world."

"But you said you're not sensitive to physical contact-" His finger shushed Kerry's argument.

"Just because we don't feel pain in combat, or feel much on our skin doesn't mean we don't feel…elsewhere." He lowered his face until they were nose to nose. Kerry gulped nervously.

"In fact, being the masters of seduction and all that is sodomy," His tongue traced her jawline until he was whispering in her ear with a deep husky growl, "We feel far more intensely in certain places than humans do."

"Oh…" Kerry whispered. Her eyes closed shut as her body trembled from the sensation of Michel nibbling on her ear.

Instinctively, one of her hands grabbed his messy hair while the other pulled him closer. She couldn't help grin smugly when she heard him moan after she arched her body to brush up against his.

His tongue was now lapping at her neck while Kerry tugged at his dress shirt, his suit jacket suddenly on the floor next to the bed. He obliged her by deftly unbuttoning his shirt while never stopping his teasing with his mouth. Kerry was in pure awe by the toned muscles of his arms and chest, her hands trailed down his torso, lightly tracing the defined 'V' shape that started near his hips and disappeared into his pants. Just as she was undoing his belt he grabbed her hands and pinned them over her head.

Face-to-face again he had the most arrogant grin, "You're so eager…but I won't give you gratification so soon."

He chuckled at Kerry's disappointed groan. His tongue traced her bottom lip slowly. One of his sharp fangs grazed her lip to which she responded with a gasp at the sharp pain.

Michel took this opportunity to explore her open mouth. His tongue tortured Kerry, encouraging her own to slip past between his lips. Soon she felt bolder and pulled at his side until she was on top of him, straddling his waist.

She bravely explored the beautiful man beneath her with her mouth. She felt bursts of confidence every time his eyes rolled back from the ecstasy she caused him.

The way his intense blue eyes peered at her under his dark lashes, or how his partially parted lips let out rhythmic pants. She smirked at the sense of dominance she had over him.

Michel must have caught on to what Kerry was thinking because he had a sudden look of irritation, "You're getting too full of yourself."

Kerry grinned coyly, as she looked down on him with her head tilted slightly looking as innocent as possible. She inhaled sharply when his strong hands swiftly grabbed her waist.

"Don't forget who you're dealing with."

And before she could respond, he slid her body down and thrust up against her.

Kerry's head fell back as she cried out, shaking from the waves of pleasure jolting from his hardened manhood rubbing between her thighs.

She could barely keep her eyes open and her mouth shut as she moaned and sighed, but she saw the evil smirk between Michel's own primal growls of satisfaction.

She needed desperately to remove the barrier of clothing.

She wanted him.

Everything in her mind was overcome with thoughts of dark desires and just as he was pulling her shirt up…

"MICHEL! YOU GOTTA COME QUICK! THERE'S-…OH!...Uh….uh…sorry!" Emiel burst through the door and had just realized what he interrupted.

Kerry's eyes were wide and her body became stiff as a board, too embarrassed to move or speak. She was grateful her back was too him, and she felt the tiny hairs on her neck rise. She could almost feel his stare burn into her back.

She almost forgot Michel was underneath her until she heard him speak in the most terrifyingly calm voice.

"Get. Out."

"I'm so sorry! I didn't know! It's just that-" Emiel started backing out apologetically.

"I fucking swear…if you don't shut up…" Michel's voice warned, "GET OUT!"

"Sorry!" And the door shut immediately.

Kerry let out the breath she didn't realize she had been holding in. She immediately regretted looking at Michel's face because the look of sheer rage alarmed her.

"Mi…chel?" She started slowly.

"I'm gonna kill him…I'm gonna kill them all." Michel closed his eyes as his hand massaged his temples to relax.

While he was trying to rest his temper, Kerry had a full view of his impressive body. Before, she was too entranced to truly appreciate him. Unfortunately by being snapped out of her euphoric state, she was also extremely self-conscious and painfully realizing her position on top of him.

As his eyes were still shut, she instantly jumped off of him and high-tailed it to the attached bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her.

Sliding down the door behind her, she sat on the floor relieved and mortified. On the other side she heard a sigh of aggravation.

'_What the hell are you doing Kerry Nowicki?!'_ She thought to herself, burying her red-hot face in her hands.

* * *

**It's been a really long time since I updated so my writing probably changed. Please review though, I wanna hear your feedbacks since I need more motivation to continue this story haha.**


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